RafaelNadal, 33, is a married man! The tennis star, and current men’s world number two, married his longtime girlfriend Mery Xisca Perelló, 31. The couple wed on Saturday, Oct. 19 in front of their friends and family on the gorgeous Spanish island of Mallorca — Rafael’s home — according to AFP. The couple reportedly invited 350 guests for the private ceremony, which took place at the British owned La Fortaleza estate. Mery wore a dress by designer Rosa Clara, and guests dined on food by Michelin-star chef Quique Dacosta.
Maria and Rafael got engaged in May 2018 and have been in a longtime relationship since 2005. While Rafael is known around the world as a major tennis star, he’s kept his personal life very secret. The Grand Slam champion started dating Maria, nicknamed Xisca, when the two were just teenagers! At 18-years-old, Rafael was a rising tennis star and chose to keep his relationship with Maria out of the spotlight.
Though it wasn’t widely known at the time, Maria actually made one of her first appearances to support Rafael at the 2007 Wimbledon tournament. Since the pair got together, Maria has gone on to earn her degree in business and now works at the Rafael Nadal Tennis Academy in Mallorca, while Rafael has won a whopping 19 Grand Slam titles!
Rafael’s now wife was in full fan mode at the recent US Open in September 2019. The Spaniard took on Russian Daniil Medvedev, 23, in the final, playing a full five set match at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows, New York. It was an incredibly dramatic match, with each player trading sets back and forth. All the while, Maria was on the sidelines cheering her fiancé on and getting very involved in the emotion and excitement of the long match. In the end, Rafael triumphed to earn his fourth US Open title. While Rafael is an aggressive player on the court and Maria an avid supporter in the stands, their wedding didn’t have any tennis pressure at all. But the final score was definitely love. Congrats to the happy couple!
