Gisele Bündchen Denies Giving Tom Brady Ultimatum: 'Craziest Thing I've Ever Heard'

Gisele Bündchen has bad news for the people who speculated her divorce from Tom Brady resulted from his decision to return for a 23rd NFL season.

In a profile by Vanity Fair's Michelle Ruiz, Bündchen said the notion she gave Brady an ultimatum to retire was "the craziest thing I've ever heard."

The Brazilian supermodel added it "takes years" for a marriage to fall apart to the point both parties decide to separate, but she will "continue forever" to root for Brady in anything he does.

"If there's one person I want to be the happiest in the world, it's him, believe me. I want him to achieve and to conquer. I want all his dreams to come true. That's what I want, really, from the bottom of my heart," she said.

Brady announced on Oct. 28 that he and Bündchen finalized their divorce after 13 years of marriage.

Nicole Massabrook of US Weekly reported in October that Bündchen at one point told Brady "either he leaves football to spend time with the family or she is gone for good."

Over the course of their marriage, Bündchen did speak publicly about her concern for Brady's long-term health as he continued to play football.

"He had a concussion last year," Bundchen said in a May 2017 interview on CBS This Morning (h/t Jill Martin of CNN.com). "He has concussions pretty much every—I mean, we don't talk about it. He does have concussions. I don't really think it's a healthy thing for a body to go through that kind of aggression all the time. That could not be healthy for you."

Brady announced his retirement from the NFL in February 2022 before walking back that decision 40 days later.

During training camp with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Brady left the team for 11 days in August for reasons that weren't publicly disclosed.

"Everyone has different situations they're dealing with and we all have unique challenges to our lives," Brady told reporters after an Aug. 27 preseason game against the Indianapolis Colts. "I'm 45 years old, man. There's a lot of s--t going on, so you just have to try and figure out life the best you can. You know, it's a continuous process."

Aaron Wilson of Pro Football Network reported the seven-time Super Bowl champion was on a family vacation in the Bahamas during at least part of his excused absence from the Bucs.

The 2022 season was arguably the worst of Brady's career, though he still led the league with 490 completions and 733 attempts. The four-time NFL MVP threw for 4,694 yards and 25 touchdowns to help the Buccaneers win the NFC South, albeit with an 8-9 record.

Tampa's season came to an end with a 31-14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC Wild Card Game.

Brady retired from the NFL for a second time on Feb. 1.