Björn Borg & Mariana Simionescu: When Tennis Royalty Couldn't Survive Retirement
He conquered Wimbledon five times but couldn't survive retirement — and neither could his marriage.
Key Facts
What Happened
Björn Borg was tennis royalty — five consecutive Wimbledon titles (1976-1980), six French Open titles, and a rock-star persona that made him the first modern sports celebrity. Mariana Simionescu was a Romanian tennis player who had reached the French Open quarterfinals. They were the golden couple of tennis in the late 1970s, representing a sport at the height of its glamour. They married on July 24, 1980, in a ceremony in Bucharest that was front-page news across Europe.
But Borg's sudden retirement from professional tennis in 1983 at the age of just 26 triggered a personal crisis. Simionescu later described how her husband, unable to cope with life after tennis, would 'watch TV, then go out with the night people — he wanted to have another life.' The structure and purpose that competitive tennis provided vanished, and Borg struggled with what psychologists would now recognize as a classic athlete identity crisis. The marriage could not survive the turbulence.
The divorce was finalized at the end of 1984 after just four years of marriage. Rumors circulated that Simionescu received $8.3 million (£6 million) in alimony, but she publicly denied this figure, calling it untrue. The actual terms of the settlement remain private. Simionescu never remarried but had a son, Anthony, with former Formula 1 racer Jean-Louis Schlesser.
Borg's post-divorce life spiraled further. He fathered a son with model Jannike Björling in 1985, made unsuccessful comeback attempts, faced business failures, and reportedly attempted suicide. He eventually stabilized, married Patricia Östfeldt in 2002, and rebuilt his life around a fashion brand bearing his name. The Borg-Simionescu divorce illustrates how the end of a sports career can be as traumatic as any personal loss — and how that trauma can destroy the relationships closest to the athlete.
Legal Breakdown: How athlete retirement and identity crisis destabilize marriages
Swedish Property Division
Sweden operates a community property system where marital property is divided equally upon divorce. Property brought into the marriage or received as inheritance can be excluded if formally designated as separate property. For Borg, whose enormous tennis earnings were accumulated both before and during the marriage, determining which assets were marital and which were pre-marital would have been a central issue in the settlement.
Cross-Border Marriage Challenges
Borg was Swedish, Simionescu was Romanian, and they married in Bucharest. The question of which country's divorce laws applied added complexity. Generally, the country of habitual residence governs divorce proceedings, which in this case was likely Sweden or Monaco (where Borg had established residency for tax purposes). The choice of jurisdiction can significantly affect the outcome of property division.
Athlete Retirement as Divorce Trigger
While not a legal concept per se, athlete retirement is a recognized risk factor for divorce. The sudden loss of identity, structure, income trajectory, and peer community that sports provide can trigger depression, substance abuse, and relationship breakdown. Courts and mediators increasingly recognize life transitions as contributing factors in divorce, which can influence maintenance and settlement negotiations.
What This Means for Your Divorce
- →Major life transitions — especially career endings — are high-risk periods for marriages that need proactive management, not just passive hope.
- →Settlement rumors in celebrity divorces are often wildly inaccurate; actual terms are typically private and far less dramatic than media reports suggest.
- →Athletes and their spouses should plan for post-career transition together, ideally with professional support, before the retirement crisis hits.
- →Cross-border marriages between individuals of different nationalities create jurisdictional complexity that should be addressed through prenuptial agreements.
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This article is based on publicly available court records, news reports, and legal analysis. It is provided for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is created by reading this content.
Divorce laws vary by jurisdiction. Always consult a licensed attorney in your area before making legal decisions.