The Ballon d’Or France Football 2021 was awarded to Lionel Messi who won his seventh trophy, a historic record. The third women’s Ballon d’Or in history was awarded to Spain’s Alexia Putellas, a player of FC Barcelona, winner of the Champions League.

The Geneva-based company Purnell, official partner of the Ballon d’Or, presented the two winners of this 2021 edition with the Escape Ballon d’Or watch at the Théâtre du Châtelet, a model specially developed by its teams and engraved with the names of the two winners.

Fabio Cannavaro, ambassador of the house Purnell, presented the Kopa trophy, the first award of the evening to the midfielder of FC Barcelona Pedri, crowned best player under 21 years.

The Maison Purnell, which has signed a 3-year association with the prestigious award and the Amaury Media group, is proud to share the universal values of performance, talent, fair play and sustainability.

Watchmaking maison Purnell has become the official partner of the Ballon d’Or™ – a prestigious association between the most select brand which exclusively manufactures Tourbillon watches and the most sought-after award in the world of football. The partnership was signed for three years.

Upon the occasion of the Ballon d’Or™ gala evening scheduled to take place in Paris on November 29^th, France Football will respectively present each of the 2021 men’s and women’s winners of the prestigious award with a unique Purnell model specifically designed and developed for the event.


Established in Geneva since 2020, the maison of Purnell, a newcomer in the sphere of haute horlogerie, is exclusively dedicated to the design and manufacturing of Tourbillon watches, as single pieces or extremely limited editions. Expert in the knowledge of gravitational forces, its master watchmaker Éric Coudray has designed a high-speed triple-axis tourbillon named the Spherion, one of the most beautiful and mesmerizing displays of horology magic one could ever imagine.

Though the tourbillon itself was invented in 1801, Purnell has definitely propelled it into the future through the very concept of the Spherion and the avant-garde design of its watches – in complete harmony with the brand’s motto: More future than past.