Tom Brady has spoken candidly about fatherhood and what his hopes are for his children’s futures.
The 44-year-old football player detailed the importance of being a parent and how much he values his family in a clip from episode 10 of ESPN’s Man in the Arena. Brady is a father of three children, John, 14, who he shares with ex-girlfriend Bridget Moynahan, and Benjamin, 12, and Vivian, nine, whom she shares with wife Giselle Bündchen.
According to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers player, his children and father, Tom Brady Sr, have shaped him into the kind of father he aims to be and have taught him how to “keep a family together”.
“I’m a dad to some amazing children,” he explained in the clip, as streamed down his face. “I know I’m not as good a dad to my kids that my dad’s been to me. I use them as my example of how to keep a family together and to care, to support, and how to love.”
He noted that as his children get older, he and his wife hope that they are “happy” and “respectful” to others.
“We want our kids to be happy,” he continued. “I want them to be respectful of people. I want them to be kind. I want to make the world a better place.”
Regarding his children’s futures, Brady said that he his “wish” for them is that they find a career that they really “love,” just like he has.
“I think maybe what I’d wish for my children is to find something they love to do like I have. But I think I’ve taken things to an extreme, too,” he said.
However, Brady also acknowledged how there’s been some “torment” in his life, throughout all of his professional success, that he hopes his children don’t have to endure themselves.
“There are imbalances in my life and I hope they don’t take things as far as I’ve taken them,” the quarterback added. “I want them to experience great success in whatever they do. But there’s a torment about me that I don’t wish upon them.”
Brady announced his retirement on social media last February, after 22 years in the NFL. On social media, he showed his gratitude to his wife and family for allowing him to “focus on [his] career”.
“Our family is my greatest achievement,” he wrote in the post. I always came off the field and home to the most loving and supportive wife who has done EVERYTHING for our family to allow me to focus on my career.”
However, in March, he announced that he would be returning to the Buccaneers for his 23rd season in the NFL, after realising that he wasn’t quite ready to retire yet.
“These past two months I’ve realised my place is still on the field and not in the stands,” he wrote on Twitter. “That time will come. But it’s not now. I love my teammates, and I love my supportive family. They make it all possible. I’m coming back for my 23rd season in Tampa.”
