Shakira, soccer star Piqué confirm they are separating

Shakira and Gerard Piqué are separating.

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The Colombian pop singer and the Spanish soccer star made the announcement in a statement released Saturday, according to The Associated Press.

“We regret to confirm that we are separating,” the two said in the statement, which was released by Shakira’s public relations firm. “For the well-being of our children, who are our highest priority, we ask that you respect our privacy. Thank you for your understanding and respect.”

The couple has been together for 11 years and share two children, Sasha and Milan, the AP reported.

The separation comes after the Spanish news outlet El Periodico reported that Piqué is living in his house in Barcelona again, away from Shakira and the children.

Shakira, 45, met the 35-year-old FC Barcelona defender while she was promoting her 2010 World Cup anthem, “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa),” according to the news organization. They confirmed their relationship in 2011, People reported.

In February, People reported that Shakira complained that due to their different upbringings, she and Piqué argued about punctuality.

“My poor husband, slash boyfriend, slash baby daddy, whatever you want to call him, he has to wait up for me so long. He’s tired of waiting up,” Shakira said during the Planet Weirdo with Holly H podcast. “‘Cause Colombian time is not the same as Catalonian time, Spanish time.”

“His mind is structured like that and mine. … I’ve become a lot more punctual since I met him,” Shakira said. “(But) the times that we actually fight is because I’m late and he’s waiting up.”

Shakira released “Don’t Wait Up” in July 2021, her first solo release since 2017, People reported. It was her first English language track since “Try Everything” in 2016.

Piqué has been with FC Barcelona since 2008.

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