Geneva Watch Auction Week 2026 · Christie’s Coverage
The short version
A stainless-steel Cartier Pasha purchased by Zinédine Zidane with his first professional salary at Girondins de Bordeaux — roughly 35 years ago — will sell at Christie’s Rare Watches in Geneva on 9 November 2026. No pre-sale estimate has been published; proceeds go to ELA International, the European Leukodystrophies Association. The Pasha joins 20 other unique pieces in the Watches for ELA charity section, a standalone auction-within-an-auction that Christie’s hosts for ELA. Viewing is at the Four Seasons Hôtel des Bergues, Geneva, from 7 November.
The Watch That Started Everything
Zinédine Zidane needs no introduction: three Ballons d’Or, two Champions League titles as manager of Real Madrid, a World Cup winner’s medal in 1998, a European Championship in 2000. His career generated a fortune that could have furnished a vault of horological rarities. Yet the watch he chose to put up for auction is not a bespoke complication or a one-of-one collector’s piece — it is the first watch he ever bought for himself.
Zidane bought the Pasha de Cartier while a young midfielder at FC Girondins de Bordeaux, around 1991. He was not yet the global phenomenon he would become; Bordeaux paid him enough for his first real professional wage, and he walked into a watchmaker and chose what he would wear for years. “I bought it almost 35 years ago,” he said when he handed it over for the Watches for ELA charity auction. He has backed the European Leukodystrophies Association for more than 25 years — a commitment that predates his managerial career and has nothing to do with sport.
Leukodystrophies are rare, progressive neurological diseases that predominantly affect children, attacking the myelin sheath that protects the brain’s nerve fibres. ELA International funds research, coordinates clinical trials, and supports affected families across Europe. The decision to consign the Bordeaux watch was a personal one: he could have kept it as a private memento or donated the proceeds of a more conspicuous piece. Instead, he sent Christie’s the watch that marked the moment his career began.
What Is the Pasha de Cartier?
The Pasha de Cartier first appeared in 1985, designed by Gérald Genta — the same designer responsible for the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and the Patek Philippe Nautilus. Cartier’s brief was unusual: a sports watch for El Glaoui, the Pasha of Marrakech, who had asked Jacques Cartier for a water-resistant wristwatch robust enough to wear in a swimming pool. Genta answered with a round case, an octagonal bezel, an integrated bracelet, and — most distinctively — a screw-down crown guard fitted with a sapphire cabochon and a small chain that secured it to the lug when unscrewed. Water resistance was rated to 100 metres, well beyond what most dress watches then offered.
By the early 1990s the Pasha had become a recognisable symbol of understated European success. It was not the conspicuous Rolex of the boardroom or the complicated Patek of the collector — it was a watch that suggested money worn with ease. The steel-and-bracelet version, approximately 38 millimetres in this era, sat naturally on the wrist of a rising sportsman or the sort of professional who wore his jacket on Fridays. Zidane’s version almost certainly houses the calibre 887, a movement Cartier built on the ETA 2892-A2 base — reliable and unpretentious, a workhorse motor inside a jewellery-house case.
The Cartier Ballon Bleu largely replaced the Pasha in public consciousness through the 2000s, but Cartier re-launched the reference in 2020 as part of a wider reclamation of its sports-watch legacy. The vintage steel Pashas from the 1985–2004 run have since attracted collector interest: they represent the original spirit of the reference, before it was softened into a lifestyle piece. A clean example in steel without provenance trades for roughly CHF 3,000–8,000 in the secondary market depending on condition, variant, and the presence of original papers.
The Lot at a Glance
| Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
| Model | Pasha de Cartier |
| Case material | Stainless steel |
| Bracelet | Stainless steel, integrated |
| Crown guard | Screw-down with sapphire cabochon and security chain |
| Approximate year | c. 1991 (based on provenance; specific reference not disclosed) |
| Movement | Automatic (probable cal. 887; not confirmed by Christie’s) |
| Water resistance | 100 m / 10 bar |
| Pre-sale estimate | Not published (proceeds to ELA International) |
| Sale | Christie’s Rare Watches, Geneva, 9 November 2026, 1:00 PM CET |
| Public viewing | Four Seasons Hôtel des Bergues, Geneva, from 7 November |
All lot details are correct as at 2 November 2026. Christie’s has not published a pre-sale estimate or the specific reference number for this lot.
Watches for ELA: Twenty-One Pieces for One Cause
Christie’s Rare Watches session on 9 November is primarily a commercial catalogue — 218 lots anchored by Michael Schumacher’s F.P. Journe ruthenium-dial collection. But a distinct block inside the same live sale carries 21 Watches for ELA pieces: unique timepieces donated by brands including Alpina, Boucheron, Bovet, Montblanc, and Tissot, as well as Zidane’s Pasha. On these lots, Christie’s waives its buyer’s premium. The full hammer price goes to ELA International.
This is the second Watches for ELA partnership with Christie’s. The initiative is led by Guy Alba, president of ELA International, and counts François-Henri Pinault — executive chairman of Kering, which acquired Christie’s in 2023 — among its supporters. The first edition raised funds directed toward ongoing gene therapy trials for leukodystrophies. Proceeds from the 2026 edition are designated for research programs and family support across Europe.
For bidders, the absence of a published estimate on the Zidane lot is deliberate. Christie’s will open the floor and let the market establish the price. This approach is common for unique charity consignments where provenance, rather than technical specification, is the primary value driver.
What Will It Sell For?
Pricing a watch owned by Zinédine Zidane is genuinely hard, because the standard auction comparables do not apply cleanly. Provenance premiums work best when the watch itself is already highly valued: Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona sold for USD 17.8 million in 2017 partly because the “Paul Newman” dial variant was already among the most sought-after references in collecting, and the personal attribution merely confirmed it. Steve McQueen’s Heuer Monaco cleared USD 2.2 million in 2020 for similar reasons — the Monaco was already an icon, and McQueen’s name made it definitive.
The Zidane Pasha is a different kind of lot. The watch itself — a steel Pasha from the early 1990s, sold in Cartier boutiques across Europe at the time — has a secondary-market replacement value of perhaps CHF 5,000–10,000 in excellent condition. The premium is entirely biographical. Zidane is one of the three or four most recognised sportspeople in the world; the story — first professional salary, first watch, Bordeaux, a lifelong charity commitment — is emotionally complete and historically significant.
The clearest comparable is the charity auction premium itself. Watches donated by prominent European athletes at similar events have sold for significant multiples of market value: a sport-oriented steel model attached to a well-known name has cleared CHF 80,000–120,000 at comparable charity sales. The Antiquorum New York results from October 2026 reinforced that even a soft pre-Geneva-week calendar does not suppress strong provenance. No one has named a ceiling for the Zidane lot.
Viewing and Bidding
The complete Geneva week session guide covers all four major houses and their individual registration requirements. For Christie’s specifically: all registered bidders must hold an account at christies.com with a valid government-issued ID uploaded at least 48 hours before the sale. For lots without a published estimate, Christie’s requires an active credit reference on file — the same process as for any lot estimated above CHF 50,000. Phone bidding is available via the Geneva specialist team; absentee bids may be placed online or by email no later than noon Geneva time on 9 November.
The full Geneva Watch Auction Week 2026 runs from 6 to 9 November. Phillips GWAX XXIV takes place at the Hotel President Wilson on 7–8 November, Sotheby’s Important Watches at the Mandarin Oriental on 8 November, and Christie’s Rare Watches at the Four Seasons Hôtel des Bergues on 9 November. The Watches for ELA section and the Zidane Pasha will be on public view alongside the full Christie’s catalogue from 7 November. Christie’s previews are open without charge and without appointment.
Frequently Asked Questions
No. Christie’s has not published a pre-sale estimate for this lot. The sale will open to floor bidding. This is standard practice for unique charity consignments where personal provenance — not technical rarity — is the primary value driver.
Christie’s and Watches for ELA have not disclosed the specific reference number. Based on the provenance story — purchased around 1991 at Bordeaux — the watch is most likely an early first-generation Pasha de Cartier in stainless steel, produced between the reference’s debut in 1985 and a design refresh around 1996.
Yes. Christie’s waives its buyer’s premium on the 21 Watches for ELA pieces. The full hammer price plus any agreed buyer contribution goes to ELA International (European Leukodystrophies Association) to fund neurological disease research and family support programmes across Europe.
Yes. Christie’s accepts live online bids, absentee bids placed in advance, and phone bids for its Geneva sessions. Register at christies.com before bidding. For lots without a published estimate, Christie’s requires a valid credit reference on file — allow at least 48 hours before the 9 November sale to complete the verification process.
Vintage Pasha de Cartier from the 1985–2004 period has attracted growing collector interest since the reference’s 2020 relaunch. Steel models without provenance trade for CHF 3,000–8,000 depending on condition and whether original papers are present. They offer 100-metre water resistance, a reliable automatic movement, and a design story — Gérald Genta’s brief from the Pasha of Marrakech — that stands up to scrutiny. Values have risen modestly, though the reference lacks the investment-grade profile of Patek Philippe or Audemars Piguet steel sports watches.
The commercial catalogue opens with Michael Schumacher’s F.P. Journe ruthenium-dial collection — 12 watches from the Formula 1 champion’s personal holdings — which leads Christie’s pre-sale highlights. The Watches for ELA section, including Zidane’s Pasha and 20 other donated unique pieces, runs as a distinct block within the same live session starting at 1:00 PM CET at the Four Seasons Hôtel des Bergues.
Sources: Artdaily — Zidane’s first wristwatch to be auctioned in Geneva; Europa Star — Zidane’s first watch to go under the hammer; Watches for ELA International — official site; Christie’s Geneva catalogue, November 2026.
