Rafael ‘Rafa’ Nadal has revealed he’s engaged to his girlfriend of 14 years, Mery Perello, after secretly proposing to her eight months ago, according to Hello!
The tennis star, 32, appears on the upcoming front cover of the magazine’s sister publication HOLA! alongside his stunning other half, with the publication claiming he proposed to Mery, 30 – who is also known as Xisca – in May last year in Rome.
The couple, who have been together for 14 years, are reportedly now planning to exchange vows later this year in Mallorca after keeping their engagement private for the first eight months to celebrate privately.
Mery, whose full name Maria Francisca Perello, is an insurance worker who is only rarely seen at her fiance’s major matches and tournaments around the world, often choosing to support him from home. However, she made a surprise appearance at the Australian Open just weeks ago to see him finish in second place.
Nadal has previously told Hello! that he hopes to settle down and have children with Mery one day. He revealed at the time: “Obviously, I have the intention of forming a family. I love children and I would like my children to do what they like.”
Meanwhile, he told Essentially Sports at the end of last year: “I have a girlfriend too and I am not alone to take decisions.(sic)
“You have to suit situations you know. Having family? I don’t know, things are not easy to be predicted. At this age, I thought that I would have already been a former player and that I would have started a family.”
