IWC Schaffhausen has, over the years, slipped its Laureus editions into everything from rugged Pilot’s watches to the more composed elegance of Portofino models, each one carrying the same quietly powerful message beneath the metal and mechanics. These are not watches that shout for attention; they earn it through purpose, through a partnership with Laureus Sport for Good that has always been about more than just timekeeping. And now, at a moment when watchmaking risks taking itself far too seriously, IWC does something rather clever. It builds a chronograph that feels like a cockpit instrument but carries the soul of a cause, a machine that is as precise as it is meaningful. The Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Laureus Edition (Ref. IW378010) is not here to reinvent the wheel; it is here to remind you why the wheel mattered in the first place, combining sharp aviation DNA with a distinctly human narrative. And just to make sure you understand that this is no ordinary production piece, IWC caps it at a rather deliberate, rather tantalising 1000 pieces, because scarcity, like purpose, tends to sharpen desire.
Now, IWC Schaffhausen does not just make watches and call it a day. Since 2005, it has been in a long standing partnership with Laureus Sport for Good, and in an industry obsessed with heritage, that kind of consistency actually means something. Laureus itself, founded in 2000 under the rather formidable presence of Nelson Mandela, operates on a beautifully simple idea that sport can change lives. Not in a vague marketing brochure sort of way, but in a tangible and measurable one, with more than 290 programmes across 36 countries impacting over seven million young people who might otherwise have been left on the sidelines of life.
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Since 2006, IWC has marked this partnership with an annual Laureus edition, each one dressed in that unmistakable Laureus blue, less a colour and more a badge of intent. This year, instead of simply polishing the case and calling it meaningful, they have chosen to spotlight something genuinely compelling. Futbalo Girls, a programme out of Germany that uses football not as competition but as a tool. Run by the decidedly practical sounding “Integration durch Sport und Bildung e.V.”, it strips the game of its usual pressures. There are no fees, no experience required, no shouting from the sidelines, and replaces all of it with something far more useful, confidence, inclusion, and a sense of belonging. What began as a small initiative in Oldenburg has quietly grown into the largest girls football movement outside formal sport in Germany, with more than 1500 participants every single week. And here is the bit that actually matters, 84 per cent of these young women report increased self belief and social confidence, while over 95 per cent come away with the rather refreshing idea that football is not just for boys. Which, when you think about it, makes this watch less about telling time and far more about what you choose to do with it.
Now talking about the newly launched novelty, limited to 1,000 pieces globally, the Pilot’s Watch Chronograph Laureus ediition features a 43mm stainless steel case, lugs, chronograph pushers at 2 o’clock, 4 o’clock, a crown at 3 o’clock, and a polished bezel. It is distinguished by its dial in the characteristic Laureus blue hue, contrasted by silver-plated subdials, the two chronograph totalisers positioned at 9 o’clock for the 12-hour counter, 12 o’clock for the 30-minute counter for the and the small seconds indicator at 6 o’clock. The hour, minute, and tthe central vchronograph hands are rhodium-plated, and filled with Super-LumiNova. The hour markers and the minute track are printed in white
This chronograph is powered by the IWC-manufactured 69385 calibre with a classic column-wheel design enabling the wearer to accurately measure stop times of up to 12 hours. The bidirectional pawl winding system reliably builds up a power reserve of 46 hours in the mainspring. The movement is decorated with circular graining, Geneva stripes, has engraving of the individual watch number, and Laureus Sport for Good, and is visible through the sapphire glass caseback with a stainless steel oscillating weight. The watch is presented on a five-link stainless steel bracelet equipped with IWC’s EasX-CHANGE® system, a tool-free mechanism that allows the wearer to swap the metal bracelet for another strap at the touch of a button.
