Tom Brady, Gisele Bündchen finalize divorce after 13 years of marriage

TAMPA, Fla. - After weeks of speculation, Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen announced they will be going their separate ways.

Brady and Bündchen posted statements on Instagram late Friday morning, each saying they had "amicably" reached the decision. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback has been fielding divorce rumors as he and Bündchen work out reported marital issues. Sources have claimed that the marital issues between Bündchen and Brady are "nothing new," reports FOX News.

In his Instagram story, Brady released the following:

"In recent days, my wife and I finalized our divorce from one another after 13 years of marriage. We arrived at this decision amicably and with gratitude for the time we spent together."

Bündchen also issued a statement on her Instagram which read in part:

"The decision to end a marriage is never easy but we have grown apart and while it is, of course, difficult to go through something like this, I feel blessed for the time we had together and only wish the best for Tom always."

Friday, the divorce paperwork will be submitted to a Florida court, according to TMZ. The two have been working with a mediator and have settled on the custody of the children and the couple's properties, the outlet reported.

A source told PEOPLE Magazine that the couple agreed to joint custody of the children. 

"The settlement is all worked out," a source told PEOPLE. "They've been working on the terms this whole time."

"They agreed to joint custody of the kids."

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Divorce amid Brady's on-field struggles

The announcement landed in the midst of Brady's 23rd NFL season, and just months after the seven-time Super Bowl champion put an end to his short-lived retirement.

"What more do you have to prove?" Bündchen told her husband on the sidelines after his last, record-shattering Super Bowl victory, Brady himself recounted shortly after the win.

Back on Feb. 1, Brady  — who had long stated a desire to spend more time with Bündchen and his three children — said he would step away from the NFL, only to change his mind 40 days later and announced he was coming back. His return to football has not gone as planned.

Despite Brady initially saying his retirement was a chance to focus his "time and energy on other things that require my attention," part of his motivation to come back was what he has referred to as "unfinished business" with the Buccaneers. The team failed to reach the Super Bowl last season in their effort to repeat as champions.

The start of the divorce proceedings in court come one day after the Buccaneers fell to the Baltimore Ravens Thursday night. Brady finds himself riding a three-game skid for the first time since 2002 — the seven-time Super Bowl champion’s first year as a full-time starter for the New England Patriots.

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It’s the third straight loss for the Bucs, who have struggled offensively all season. 

"I said last week that there’s no immediate retirement in my future," Brady said this week on the "Let’s Go!" podcast. "There was a retirement in the past, but I moved on from that. But certainly not, you know, I’ve never, you know, I made a commitment to this team and I love this team and I love this organization. I told them in March I was playing and I’ve never quit on anything in my life. 

"And I know a bunch of teammates that we all count on one another to be at our best and to work hard and to put the team first. And that’s what you commit to and that’s what you want your teammates to commit to as well."

The beginning of Tom and Gisele's marriage

Brady and Bündchen married in 2009 after beginning their relationship in December 2006 when they were introduced by a mutual friend. 

The start of their journey to love was also rocky. Brady's ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan was pregnant with the football star's first child, Jack, at the time.

The couple said their first "I dos" in early 2009 at a Catholic church in Santa Monica, California, before family and close friends, followed by an equally small second wedding at her house in Costa Rica nearly two months later.

Their son Benjamin was born later that year, followed by a daughter, Vivian, in 2012.

Gisele's modeling career

Bündchen, who was discovered by a modeling scout at age 13 in Brazil, secured her place as one of the industry's highest-paid models by the 2000s and became a tabloid staple, fueled by a relationship with Leonardo DiCaprio. In addition to walking the runways of top designers, appearing in campaigns for high street and high fashion brands alike, she signed on as a Victoria's Secret Angel and took on small film roles — including in "The Devil Wears Prada."

She took a step back from modeling in 2015, giving up runway work and limiting herself to a few advertising campaigns and magazine covers a year. She made one big exception, wearing a glistening gown and a huge smile in 2016 as she crossed a 400-foot runway at the Rio Olympics while fellow Brazilian Daniel Jobim performed "The Girl from Ipanema."

Since paring back her modeling commitments, she has dedicated herself to environmental activism, particularly with regard to the Amazon rainforest's conservation, and business ventures like eco-friendly skin care and a lingerie line. She has also been vocal about mental health, disclosing debilitating panic attacks that she said had her contemplate suicide and criticizing unrealistic beauty standards.

Above all, Bündchen told Elle, her top priority was her family.

"I’ve done my part, which is (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 in and to be there supporting him and his dreams," she said. "Seeing my children succeed and become the beautiful little humans that they are, seeing him succeed, and being fulfilled in his career, it makes me happy. At this point in my life, I feel like I’ve done a good job on that."

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

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

A three-time NFL MVP and the league's all-time leader in yards passing and touchdowns, Brady has also signed a 10-year contract reportedly worth $375 million to become the lead football analyst for Fox Sports once he hangs up his cleats. When that will be is yet uncertain — while Brady had expressed an interest in extending his playing career beyond his mid-40s if he remained healthy, his now ex-wife had a different idea back in 2017.

"That kind of aggression all the time, that cannot be healthy for you," she said during the CBS interview. "I’m planning on him being healthy and do a lot of fun things when we’re like 100, I hope."

Tom and Gisele's full statements

Tom Brady and Gisele Bündchen each released separate statements within minutes of each other on social media, confirming their divorce and asking for privacy. They both emphasized how their children would be their priority.

Brady's full statement following the divorce announcement:

In recent days, my wife and I finalized our divorce from one another after 13 years of marriage. We arrived at this decision amicably and with gratitude for the time we spent together. We are blessed with beautiful and wonderful children who will continue to be the center of our world in every way. We will continue to work together as parents to always ensure they receive the love and attention they deserve.

We arrived at this decision to end our marriage after much consideration.

Doing so is, of course, painful and difficult, like it is for many people who go through the same thing every day around the world. However, we wish only the best for each other as we pursue whatever new chapters in our lives that are yet to be written. 

And we kindly ask for privacy and respect as we navigate what is to come in the days and weeks ahead. Thank you.

Bündchen's full statement is below:

With much gratitude for our time together, Tom and I have amicably finalized our divorce. My priority has always been and will continue to be our children whom I love with all my heart. We will continue co-parenting to give them the love, care and attention they greatly deserve.

The decision to end a marriage is never easy, but we have grown apart and while it is, of course, difficult to go through something like this, I feel blessed for the time we had together and only wish the best for Tom always.

I kindly ask that our privacy be respected during this sensitive time. Thank you.

——— 

FOX News and the Associated Press contributed to this report.

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