Meet Mery Perelló, Tennis Star Rafael Nadal's Wife — Plus Wedding Details!
Congratulations to the happy couple!
Instagram Rafael Nadal is, perhaps, best known for his beastly behavior on the tennis court, but in real life, he's a teddy bear that his longtime girlfriend absolutely adores. And the feeling is clearly mutual: he loves her so much, in fact, that he's married her recently! So who is Mery Perelló, and what do we know about her recent marriage to Rafael Nadal?
As the current #2 ranked tennis player in the world (behind Novak Djokovic), Rafael Nadal is one of the most notable figures in men's tennis today. He's won, to date, 19 Grand Slam singles titles (the second-most number of Grand Slam singles titles in history), 35 ATP Tour Masters 1000 titles, and 20 ATP Tour 500 titles. He's also won 12 French Open titles, 4 US Open titles, and 2 Wimbledon titles. The Spain-born tennis legend is also an Olympian, having won the Olympic gold medal for singles back in 2008.
So, to say he's good at tennis is an understatement, to say the least.
With all the focus on his game, it's perhaps no wonder that he's pretty much been low-key and less focused on his private life. That makes his commitment to Mery Perelló, then, pretty admirable, considering they've been together for a long time. (And her commitment to him is equally admirable.)
Let's look at what we know about Rafael Nadal's wife.
1. They didn't invite Roger Federer to the wedding.
Shade! Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer have had a long-standing beef on the court since 2004, and that rivalry has been integral to both of their careers. But according to Tennis World USA, Nadal took the beef with Federer off the court when he didn't invite Roger Federer to his wedding to Mery Perelló. (He did, however, invite the former King of Spain, so perhaps His Majesty took the place of Federer.)
2. Mery Perellò has been with Rafael Nadal since 2005.
Business Insider reports that Mery Perelló — sometimes known as "Xisca" to her family and friends — has been with Rafael Nadal since 2005. The 31-year-old only got engaged to him in May of this year, however, and it's unclear why they waited so long to get engaged or to try to tie the knot. They also got engaged while they were on vacation in Rome, Italy.
3. It was a lavish, star-studded wedding.
Express has all the details on the lavish, star-studded wedding of Rafael Nadal and Mery Perelló. The outlet reports that more than 350 people were in attendance, and they got married at La Fortaleza, a private villa owned by a member of Spanish royalty. As an interesting sidebar, La Fortaleza was where the film The Night Manager took place! In addition to former King Juan Carlos of Spain, other stars from the tennis world were in attendance, including Carlos Moya and Feliciano Lopez.
4. Rosa Clara designed Mery Perelló'sdress.
The previously-unknown dress designer, Rosa Clara, designed Mery Perelló's dress, and the designer shared the news on her Instagram page. You can check out the dress, and the touching message to the bride and groom, below.
5. Will they be having children soon?
In a rare public comment, Rafael Nadal told People that he plans to have children soon with Mery Perelló, so this might be why they got married after being together for so long. "Obviously, I have the intention of forming a family. I love children and I would like my children to do what they like,” he said, while his rep confirmed that he and Mery Perelló weren't getting married in June, contrary to a recent report on Spanish television.
6. Mery Perelló works with her husband, too.
According to The Daily Mail, Mery Perelló is an insurance broker and a graduate of business school. She also works with the Rafael Nadal charitable foundation, which the tennis star founded almost 10 years ago.
Congratulations are in order for the bride and groom, then!
Bernadette Giacomazzo is an editor, writer, and photographer whose work has appeared in People, Teen Vogue, Us Weekly, The Source, XXL, HipHopDX, The Los Angeles Times, The New York Post, and more. She is also the author of The Uprising series. For more information about Bernadette Giacomazzo, click here.