Inside Gisele Bündchen's New Chapter With Boyfriend Joaquim Valente

Word that Bündchen and Valente were growing their squad spread in October 2024, precisely two years after she and Brady divorced. And while the Lessons author never directly addressed the pregnancy reports, she showcased her baby bump on a few occasions, including a January Instagram video that had her declaring, "Happiness is an inside job. Remember, you are the only one who has the power to create the life you want to live."

The runway of Bündchen and Brady’s marriage was 13 years long. But in October 2022, after weeks of breakup rumors, the fashion icon and the former quarterback announced their split.

While Bündchen expressed in a statement that she and Brady had simply “grown apart,” she stressed the decision wasn’t easy and that she was grieving the loss of what once was.

It’s “the death of my dream,” she explained in a 2023 Vanity Fair cover story. “It’s tough because you imagine your life was going to be a certain way, and you did everything you could, you know? I believed in fairy tales when I was a kid. I think it’s beautiful to believe in that. I mean, I’m so grateful I did.” 

Though Brady and Bündchen’s love story didn't include a happily-ever-after with each other—she shot down speculation their marriage ended because he returned to the NFL just weeks after retiring, before then re-retiring the following year—she was ready to kick off a new chapter.

And she found quite the teammate in Valente, with news of their baby's arrival spreading in February 2025. 

As for her former MVP, "He’s the father of my kids,” the runway star noted to CBS Sunday Morning in November 2023. “So, I always wish him the best. I’m so grateful that he gave me wonderful children. And I think when a door shuts, other doors open.”

And so, she's been strutting right through them, adding the title of cookbook author to her already stacked résumé as one of the highest paid models.

But she wasn’t a fan of being surrounded by rumors that she cheated on Brady with Valente before their divorce, insisting to The New York Times, "That is a lie."

"This is something that happens to a lot of women who get blamed when they have the courage to leave an unhealthy relationship and are labeled as being unfaithful,” Bündchen added to the outlet in March 2024. “They have to deal with their communities. They have to deal with their family. Of course for me, it just happens to be a little bit amplified."

As she put it, "No one really knows what happens between two people, only the two people in the relationship."

So for now she'll be huddling up with Valente privately, aside from sharing the rare snap of him to Instagram and perhaps a bit of PDA at the beach.

However, she’s much more open about her life as a mom, including how she talks to her kids about the tabloids and how her daughter Vivian has been there for her amid public scrutiny.

"She’s like, 'Mommy, you always told me not to listen to the gossip and the lies,'" Bündchen recalled to The New York Times. "It’s funny because the things you teach your kids, they come back and teach you."

But make no mistake, when it comes to co-parenting, Bündchen and Brady—who is also dad to 17-year-old son Jack from his previous relationship with Bridget Moynahan—have both made it clear they’re on the same team (as seen with him wishing his exes a Happy Mother's Day on Instagram).

"I'm trying to raise them—we all are, myself and their mom—in a very loving way toward one another," the seven-time Super Bowl champ told E! News in June 2023, "to be very kind, to be empathetic and to have great perspective. Our kids are growing up in different ways than we grew up but also we want to raise them with the right values."

And as their kids navigate their teenage years, Bündchen can’t believe how quickly time has flown.

"I was there to take my kids to school every day and make them breakfast every morning and just be with them. I mean, what a gift," she told CBS Sunday Morning. "They grow up so fast, and it’s like that [snaps fingers]. You wake up and you’re like, 'What happened?'"

As Bündchen continues on her journey with her family, work, and relationship with Valente, she's doing it all on her own terms.

"I can’t really worry about what other people say about me because what they say about me is none of my business," she told Harper’s Bazaar about dealing with public scrutiny. "It’s really their business that they’re trying to project onto me. If I’m going to be affected by that, I’m never going to live my truth."

And there's a lot of joy in her truth. Check out the supermodel's sweetest photos with her squad. 

This story was originally published Nov. 1 , 2024 at 3:00 a.m. PST.