Tom Brady Confirms He’s ‘Retiring For Good’ Ahead Of 2023 NFL Season

Tom Brady is officially retiring, and this time it’s ‘for good,’ he confirmed in a Feb. 1 Instagram post.

All eyes were on Tom Brady, 45, after his 2022 NFL season came to a close when the Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost to the Dallas Cowboys on Monday night, Jan. 16.  Now, he has made his future plans known. In an Instagram video, posted on Feb. 1, Tom announced, “Good morning guys, I’ll get to the point right away: I’m retiring. For good.”

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He continued, “I know the process was a pretty big deal last time so when I woke up this morning I figured I’d just press record and let you guys know first. I won’t be long winded. You only get one super emotional retirement essay and I used mine up last year. I really thank you guys so much. To every single one of you for supporting me — my family, my friends, teammates, my competitors. I could go on forever. There’s too many. Thank you guys for allowing me to live my absolute dream. I wouldn’t change a thing. I love you all.”

His announcement comes after he told reporters he didn’t have future plans to share following the season-ending game last month. “I’m going to go home and get a good night’s sleep…as good as I can tonight,” he casually stated at the post-game press conference. “It’ll just be one day at a time, truth.”

The season was not only tough for the NFL star on the field; he had a lot going on personally as well. It was his first season as a single man after he and his ex-wife of 13 years, Gisele Bundchen, got divorced. After months of feud rumors, both Tom and the 42-year-old model confirmed their separation on Oct. 28. “In recent days, my wife and I finalized our divorce from one another after 13 years of marriage,” the NFL star wrote on his Instagram Story. “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.”

Their divorce was reportedly fueled by the fact that Tom retired from football after 22 seasons in the NFL and seven Super Bowl titles in Feb. 2022, but reversed his decision a month later and said his heart was still on the field. Gisele, who had dreams of spending more time as a family, was heartbroken by Tom’s decision.

“Gisele would never want Tom to give up his dreams and his passion for her and the kids because she knows how important football is to him,” a person close to the iconic supermodel told HollywoodLife EXCLUSIVELY in Sept. 2022. “But he’s made promises to her that he’s broken and she’s having a very hard time navigating her emotions about this whole ordeal. They made a deal when he would retire and she feels lied to at this point.”

The former couple shared three children: son Benjamin, 12, and daughter, Vivian, 9. Tom also has a 15-year-old son, Jack, from his previous relationship with Bridget Moynahan.

Tom spoke about how he was getting through the season as a divorcee in a Jan. 2 episode of his SiriusXM podcast Let’s Go!. “I think, you know, we all are going through stuff, you know, we’re people, and we’re all going through stuff, and obviously, we’re all professionals, and we wanna show up to work and do our best. And when you’re a professional, that’s what professional means,” he explained. “You show up every day with the best possible attitude you can have,” he continued. “You try to compartmentalize things and really focus on what your job is.”

A few months earlier, in Nov. 2022, he also said he was focused on being the “best dad” he could be while juggling being one of the most watched sports stars in America. “When you think about [Thanksgiving] and the commitment that parents make and that my parents made to me and my career is unbelievable. And obviously with a lot of gratitude for the people that have made such a huge impact in my life and supported me throughout this amazing career,” he said. “I just want to be that for my kids. You know, I just wanna be the best dad I could be.”