Gisele Bündchen is many things—mom, author, athlete, cook—but she is best known as a supermodel, and at one time was even the highest-paid model in the world. With so many eyes always on her, there is plenty of interest in the Brazil native’s dating life. And Bündchen has had quite a few high-profile romances, from her five-year relationship with Leonardo DiCaprio to her 13-year marriage to NFL quarterback Tom Brady.
Bündchen and Brady met in December 2006 and married in February 2009, then welcomed two children: son Benjamin and daughter Vivian. (Bündchen also became a stepmother to Brady’s son John, from his first marriage, to actor and model Bridget Moynahan.) But the couple called it quits in 2022, finalizing their divorce that October.
Now, it appears Bündchen has a new man in her life: jiu-jitsu instructor Joaquim Valente. While the two have kept their relationship relatively under wraps, People confirmed they were an item in February, and revealed they’ve been dating since June 2023.
So, who exactly is Joaquim Valente? Read ahead for everything we know about Bündchen’s new beau.
He runs a jiu-jitsu training academy with his brothers.
Valente is all about moving his body: A native of Brazil like Bündchen, he runs a jiu-jitsu academy in North Miami with his siblings, called Valente Brothers.
According to the school’s website, the family first took up the martial art nearly 70 years ago. It all started in 1952, when grandmasters Carlos and Hélio Gracie opened the Academia Gracie in Rio de Janeiro. Soon after, Syllo Valente registered his son Pedro Sr. there. Pedro Sr.’s enthusiasm spurred a generations-long love of the sport, and three waves of Valentes would eventually train under grandmaster Hélio.
By the 1990s, Pedro Sr.’s three sons Pedro Jr., Gui, and Joaquim—who had studied the sport since they were small children—were opening their own jiu-jitsu school; they had already taught classes as young adults, after migrating to the United States. In 1998, the Valente Brothers academy officially opened in Miami, and it is now a successful studio modeled after the Academia Gracie.
He met Gisele because she trains at his studio.
Bündchen and Valente first met when the model started taking jiu-jitsu lessons at his academy in 2021.
At the time, Bündchen was still married to Brady, and a close source told People that she and Valente were strictly platonic at first. “They started out as friends,” the insider said. “He was a huge comfort for Gisele while she went through her divorce. Their friendship turned romantic after the divorce.”
The source said the two connected due to shared interests and similar backgrounds. “They come from similar backgrounds,” the insider said. “They both left Brazil very young. They have both created amazing lives for themselves in the U.S. They both love Miami, but also enjoy traveling. They both enjoy healthy living.”
Along Bündchen, her and Brady’s two kids have also trained in jiu-jitsu at the Valente Brothers academy. In fact, teen son Benjamin was the reason she started studying there in the first place.
“Initially, I wasn’t even considering it for myself,” she told Dust Magazine in 2022. “But when I brought [my son] to the first class and started talking to Joaquim, I realized that it was much more than self-defense.”
He studied criminology at Barry University in Florida.
The youngest of the brothers, Joaquim was followed in Pedro Jr. and Gui’s footsteps when he moved to the U.S. to go to college in 2007. He studied criminology at Barry University in Miami Shores, Florida.
And he stayed close to his brothers, who had both also gotten degrees in Florida years. Eldest brother Pedro Jr. got an MBA from the University of Miami, while Gui also attended Barry, earning a master’s of science in sports management. The two older brothers had already graduated when Joaquim enrolled in college, and were both still teaching jiu-jitsu in Miami at the time. That may have influenced his choice to attend Barry.
He has a private Instagram account.
Valente keeps his personal life out of the spotlight for the most part. He does have an Instagram account with almost 10,000 followers, but it is currently set to private.
The only information from the profile available to the public is Valente’s bio, which includes the usernames for the Valente Brothers academy account (@ValenteBrothers), the Valente Brothers Tactical Training account (@TacticalVB), and the account for 753 Code (@753Code), a lifestyle blog run by the Valentes. You gotta admire these bros for their brand-building.
Bündchen describes their relationship as “very honest.”
Bündchen opened up about her raw relationship with Valente in a March 2024 interview with The New York Times to promote her cookbook Nourish.
“This is the first time I am seeing someone that was a friend of mine first,” she said. “It’s very different. It is very honest, and it’s very transparent.”
In the interview, Bündchen also shut down rumors that she started her romance with Valente before her split from ex-husband Tom Brady. “That is a lie,” she said of the accusations of infidelity.
Bündchen addressed the criticism she faced after her separation from Brady. “This is something that happens to a lot of women who get blamed when they have the courage to leave an unhealthy relationship and are labeled as being unfaithful. They have to deal with their communities. They have to deal with their family,” she said. “Of course for me, it just happens to be a little bit amplified.”
Joel is the editorial and social media assistant for HarpersBAZAAR.com, where he covers all things celebrity news. When he steps away from the keyboard, you can likely find him singing off-key at concerts, scavenging thrift stores for loud wardrobe staples, or perusing bookstores for the next great gay romance novel.
