Super Bowl-winning quarterback Tom Brady and supermodel Gisele Bündchen announced Friday that they have “amicably finalized” their divorce after 13 years of marriage.
“We arrived at this decision amicably and with gratitude for the time we spent together,” Brady posted in an Instagram Story. “We are blessed with beautiful and wonderful children who will continue to be the center of our world in every way.”
Bündchen posted a similar message, saying: “We will continue co-parenting to give them the love, care and attention they greatly deserve.”
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback, 45, and the Brazilian fashion model, 42, hired separate divorce lawyers earlier this month. They married in February 2009 and have two children together, Benjamin, 12, and Vivian, 9. The NFL legend has another son, John Edward, 15, from a previous relationship with actor Bridget Moynahan.
Brady said they decided to part ways after “much consideration” and called the decision “painful and difficult.” Bündchen said it was not an easy decision but they “have grown apart.”
“However, we wish only the best for each other as we pursue whatever new chapters in our lives that are yet to be written,” Brady posted.
News that the pair’s marriage was on the rocks surfaced this month, apparently over the seven-time Super Bowl champ’s surprise decision to return to football weeks after he said he was retiring.
That decision did not sit well with Bündchen.
“Obviously, I have my concerns — this is a very violent sport, and I have my children, and I would like him to be more present,” she told Elle magazine.
“I have definitely had those conversations with him over and over again. But ultimately, I feel that everybody has to make a decision that works for [them],” she continued. “He needs to follow his joy, too.”
Brady took an 11-day break from the Buccaneers’ training camp in August, which the team attributed to “personal things.” When he returned, he shed very little light on his absence.
“It’s all personal,” he told reporters. “You know everyone’s got different situations they’re dealing with. So, we all have really unique challenges to our life.”
He added that, at 45 years old, he had a lot going on in his life.
Forbes ranked Brady as the world’s ninth highest-paid athlete this year. Bündchen has repeatedly been ranked by Forbes as one of the wealthiest celebrities in the world and crowned her as the world’s highest-paid supermodel in 2007.
Source: | This article originally belongs to Nbcnews.com
