Gisele Bündchen Admits Apprehension Over Tom Brady’s Return to Football: ‘I Would Like Him to be More Present’

(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Gisele Bündchen is addressing her marriage to quarterback Tom Brady, amid rumors the couple’s relationship is on the brink following his decision to come out of retirement.

In a new interview for Elle magazine, Bündchen admits that although she understands her husband’s love of the game, she can’t help but wish he would have more time for their family:

Although she and her husband have joked about his potential retirement for years, Bündchen is often depicted by the media as desperate for Brady to call it quits. I tell her the characterization seems sexist to me, and she agrees. “I think this is the system we’ve been living in. That’s what society has accepted and what society hasn’t accepted.”

“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,” Bündchen added. “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]. He needs to follow his joy, too.”

Bündchen also revealed that the time has come to focus on her own dreams and goals again:

“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. 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.” Looking forward, Bündchen is going to make more space for her dreams, too. “I have a huge list of things that I have to do, that I want to do,” she says. “At 42, I feel more connected with my purpose.”

This comes just weeks after Page Six reported a growing rift between the couple that allegedly took Brady away from the Buccaneers training camp for 11 days.

Brady has also addressed his return to football and juggling his career with family on a recent episode of his podcast, Let’s Go! with Tom Brady, Larry Fitzgerald and Jim Gray.

Brady spoke of balancing the two worlds, saying “You can’t stop your life even though sports is happening.” He recognized the necessary commitment to his three children but also revealed that when football comes along, it’s time to “lock in.”

“We all have different things that are going on. And I think once football season comes, I really lock in on what I need to do and how I need to focus, and the kind of commitment I need to make for the organization so that we can maximize our potential as a team,” he concluded.