Gisele Bundchen and Tom Brady announce divorce after 13 years – The Morning Call

NEW YORK — Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen have finalized their divorce, they announced Friday, ending a 13-year marriage between the two superstars who reached the heights of fashion and football, respectively.

Brady and Bündchen released statements on Instagram late Friday morning, each saying they had come to an “amicable” decision. Checks of court records Friday morning in Tampa, Miami and West Palm Beach did not immediately show a divorce petition from either member of the couple, who are eligible to file in any Florida county.

“The decision to end a marriage is never easy, but we are separated and of course it’s hard to go through something like this, I feel blessed for the time we had together and always wish Tom the best,” Bündchen wrote.

Both said their priorities lie with their children and asked for privacy.

“We have come to the decision to end our marriage after much consideration,” Brady wrote. “It is certainly painful and difficult to do this, as it is for many people who go through the same thing every day around the world.”

The divorce comes in the midst of Brady’s 23rd NFL season and amid his first three-game losing streak in 20 years, just months after the seven-time Super Bowl champion ended his short-lived career. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback — who has long expressed a desire to spend more time with Bündchen and his three children — announced his retirement from the game in February, only to change his mind 40 days later.

“What else do you have to prove?” Bündchen told her husband on the sidelines after his latest, record-setting Super Bowl victory, as Brady himself revealed shortly after the victory.

Although Brady initially said his retirement was a chance to focus his “time and energy on other things that need my attention,” part of his motivation to return was what he called “unfinished business.” with the Buccaneers. The team failed to reach the Super Bowl last season in an attempt to repeat as champions.

Bündchen told CBS This Morning in 2017 that she was worried about her husband after he played through a concussion last year. Brady’s then-team, the New England Patriots, and an agent declined to respond to her comments at the time, and an NFL spokesman said there was no record of him suffering a head injury. Brady later said he preferred to keep his medical history private.

“I mean, we don’t talk about it,” Bündchen said during the interview. “But he has a concussion. I really don’t think it’s healthy for anyone to go through.

She recently claimed that the characterization in reports that she desperately wanted her husband to retire had sexist undertones.

“Obviously, I have my concerns. It’s a very violent sport and I’ve got kids and I’d like it to be more present,” he said The supermodel told Elle magazine about it in September. “I definitely talked to him over and over again. But at the end of the day, I think everyone should make the decision that works for (them). He also needs to follow his own joy.’

Bündchen and Brady were introduced by a mutual friend and married twice just over two years later. They said their first ‘I do’s’ in early 2009 at a Catholic church in Santa Monica, California in front of family and close friends, followed by an equally small second wedding at her home in Costa Rica almost two months later.

Later that year, their son Benjamin was born, and in 2012, their daughter Vivian. Brady also has a 15-year-old son, Jack Moynahan, from a previous relationship with actor Bridget Moynahan.

Discovered by a fashion scout in Brazil at the age of 13, Bündchen secured her place as one of the highest-paid models in the industry by the 2000s and became a tabloid staple, fueled by her relationship with Leonardo DiCaprio. In addition to modeling for top designers, appearing in campaigns for streetwear and fashion brands, she has signed on to be a Victoria’s Secret Angel and has appeared in small film roles, including The Devil Wears Prada.

In 2015, she retired from the modeling business, giving up work on the catwalk and limiting herself to a few advertising campaigns and magazine covers a year. She made one big exception, in a shiny dress and a huge smile in 2016 as she walked down the 400-foot (120-meter) runway at the Rio Olympics while Brazil’s Daniel Jobim performed “The Girl from Ipanema.”

After she retired from modeling, she devoted herself to environmental activism, particularly in relation to conservation of the Amazon rainforest, and business ventures such as eco-friendly skin care and an underwear line. She also spoke about mental health, revealing debilitating panic attacks that she said made her think about suicide and criticizing unrealistic beauty standards.

Most of all, Bündchen told Elle, her top priority was her family.

“I did my part, which was to (be) there for (Tom). I moved to Boston and I focused on creating a cocoon and a loving environment for my children to grow up and be there to support him and his dreams,” she said. “I see my children succeed and become such beautiful little people, I see him succeed and fulfill himself in his career. At this point in my life, I feel like I’ve done a good job.”

After years in Boston, where Brady played for the Patriots, and then relocating with him to Tampa in 2020, she said she had plans of her own: “I have a huge list of things to do that I want to do . At 42, I feel more connected to my purpose.”

Brady turned 45 in August when he left the Buccaneers for 11 days for undisclosed personal reasons. The team supported the vacation, calling it a pre-planned break agreed upon before the start of training camp in July.

A three-time NFL MVP and the league’s all-time leader in receiving yards and touchdowns, Brady signed a 10-year contract reportedly worth $375 million to become Fox Sports’ lead football analyst once he hangs up his boots. When that will happen remains to be seen — while Brady has expressed interest in extending his playing career beyond his mid-40s if he stays healthy, his now-ex-wife had a different idea back in 2017.

“That kind of aggression all the time, it can’t be healthy for you,” she said during an interview with CBS. “I plan to keep him healthy and doing a lot of fun things when we’re around 100, I hope.”

Associated Press reporters Kurt Anderson and Rob Maadi contributed to this report.