Maria Francisca Perello or Xisca Perello, as she is known to the fans, is the wife of Rafael Nadal, the tennis player from Spain. Maria was an insurance worker who is currently the project director of the Rafa Nadal Foundation. Nadal and Perello are together now for over 14 years, and we’ve all seen her from time to time on the stand, cheering on her now-husband.
The wife of Rafael Nadal was born on 7 July 1988 to her parents, father Bernat Perello and mother Maria Pascual, in Palma de Majorca, Spain. She was born to working-parents, who were both bread earners and Maria was instilled with work ethic from an early age. She attended high school in Majorca where she was given the nickname of Xisca, and she prefers to be called by the nickname instead of her given name.
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After finishing high school, the Spanish beauty left for London, where she intended to study Business Administration. Speaking English was a difficult task for her which is why she struggled at first, but after a while, she got the hang of it all and graduated with a degree in Business Administration. At this point, she was already in a relationship with Rafael Nadal, and their relationship was not always helpful for her; instead, it was the reason why she left one of her jobs after leaving college.
Working for MAPFRE and Leaving Because of Her Relationship with Rafael Nadal
Maria left her job in MAPFRE after calls of favoritism.
Source: Instagram @xiscaperellofans
For a while, Xisca worked for MAPFRE where after she started working, according to Tuko, she started getting a lot of hostility aimed her way. The reason for it all was the fact MAPFRE is the sponsor of Rafael Nadal, and there were rumors going around at work saying she only got the job because she is the girlfriend of Nadal.
Maria is an educated person who stayed away from the limelight for exactly this reason, so people don’t think she is getting better treatment than others. She got the job on her own strength and instead people talked behind her back about favoritism. After the debacle, there was no way she could continue working there, which is why she left the job.
The Long Romance with Rafael Nadal
Rafael Nadal and Xisca Perello met in high school and started dating in 2005.
Source: Instagram
Rafael Nadal and Maria Perello met in high school in their hometown of Majorca. She was a friend of his sister, Maria Isabel. They two met in high school, but the romance between the couple did not ensue until they left school.
Nadal and Perello started seeing each other in early 2005, and they started being a couple the same year. Maria is from a rare breed of athlete wives; she likes to stay as far away from the limelight as possible. In one of the rare interviews she gave in 2011, the now-wife of Nadal said she does not like to hang around Rafa while he is on tour because it may asphyxiate her and the couple may be in trouble.
Rafael Nadal and Maria Perello got engaged in 2018.
Source: Instagram
Maria said, “Rafael needs his space when he is competing, and just the idea of me hanging around and waiting on his needs all day tires me out. It would asphyxiate me. And then he would have to be worrying about me... No. If I followed him everywhere, I think there’s a risk we might stop getting along.” The recipe for Nadal’s success is a loving girlfriend who wants to leave him to his own devices when he is competing and only appearing every so often.
Since 2005 they were together, the tennis world was asking when the duo is getting married, but there was never a clear answer to the question. Nadal avoided the question of his relationship, with him addressing the question once and saying his girlfriend is a private person with no interest in living in the public eye. But he also stated one time in an interview; he would, one day love to be parents to his kids.
The Proposal and Getting Married
Rafael Nadal and his wife Maria Francisca Perello.
Source: Instagram
After 13 years together, Rafa felt it was the right time to ask the person who’s been his rock and his home to be his wife. It was reported the player proposed to his longtime girlfriend in May of 2018 while visiting Rome. Maria showed off her ring during a game, and they confirmed they were engaged, to be married in the near future.
Finally, the day arrived when the duo got married on 19 October 2019 in the fortress La Fortaleza, which is considered to be one of the most expensive properties in Spain. This was the same place, Real Madrid superstar Gareth Bale got married to his fiancé, and the fortress was also used to film the show The Night Manager.
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Among the celebrity guests at the fortress, which was built in 1628, was the former King of Spain, Juan Carlos I and the catering was said to be handled by Michelin-star chef, Quique Dacosta. The bride wore a dress designed by Rosa Clara, who shared the making of the dress and the drawings without revealing the dress itself. She also thanked the couple for choosing her brand for the beautiful day.
Photos from the Marriage Ceremony
Rafael Nadal and Maria Francisca 'Xisca' Perello got married on the Spanish island of Majorca in the presence of 300 guests.
Source: Harper Bazaar
Rafael Nadal and Maria Francisca 'Xisca' Perello were together for over 14 years when they decided to get married.
Source: Harper Bazaar
We all here wish the newly married couple a happy and fruitful married life for a long time to come and for more Biography and Gossip, visit Celebs In-depth.
