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Shakira Admits Putting Her 'Career on Hold' for Ex Gerard Piqué


Mon 18 Mar 2024 | 09:05 PM
Shakira, Gerard Piqué
Shakira, Gerard Piqué
Yara Sameh

Lebanese-Colombian superstar Shakira got candid about everything she gave up during her 11-year romance with professional footballer Gerard Piqué.

In a new interview with The Sunday Times, the 47-year-old superstar spoke out about the sacrifices she made during her relationship with the soccer star, 37. 

“For a long time I put my career on hold, to be next to Gerard, so he could play football,” said Shakira, whose first album in seven years, "Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran" (Women Don’t Cry Anymore), arrives on March 22.

The “Hips Don’t Lie” singer continued, “There was a lot of sacrifice for love.”

Shakira and Piqué — who share two children, sons Milan, 11, and Sasha, 9 — announced their split in June 2022 after 11 years. 

“We regret to confirm that we are separating,” they said in a joint statement at the time. “For the well-being of our children, who are our highest priority, we ask that you respect our privacy. Thank you for your understanding.”

They signed a child custody agreement last December after a protracted negotiation which came to a head with a marathon 12-hour meeting with their lawyers. Shakira moved to Miami with their sons in April.

Shakira met the Barcelona defender while she was promoting her 2010 World Cup anthem, “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa).” They confirmed their relationship on social media the following year.

In her Billboard cover story last year, Shakira shared she believed in “till death do us part” in regards to her relationship with Piqué. 

“My priority was my home, my family. I believed in ’till death do us part.’ I believed that dream,” she stated. “My parents have been together, I don’t know, 50 years, and they love each other like the first day, with a love that’s unique and unrepeatable,” she continued. “So I know it’s possible.”

Shakira added, “It’s what I wanted for myself and my children, but it didn’t happen.”

Gerard Pique and Shakira

Last March, the soccer star spoke out publicly for the first time about his high-profile breakup with the multiple Grammy and Latin Grammy winner.

“I won’t say, I don’t want to,” Piqué said when pressed by Spanish media outlet El Pais about how the split had affected him. Instead, he chose to speak about their sons.

“Everyone has their responsibility to do what’s best for their kids,” he said. “It’s about protecting them. That’s the job of all parents with their kids. That’s what I’m focused on and that’s my role as a father.”

Meanwhile, Shakira has been outspoken on her side of the breakup, taking aim at Piqué on her Bizarrap collab “BZRP Music Sessions #53,” which ultimately broke 14 Guinness World Records.