The year 2023 seems to be going well for the NBA star Joel Embiid. He not only received the 2023 NBA Most Valuable Player of the Year award but also walked down the aisle with his long-term girlfriend Anne de Paula. The two got married on July 22 and fans were hooked up with their wedding pictures. They are undeniably one of the most powerful couples in the league.
Furthermore, the Philadelphia 76ers star is making waves in the NBA with his commendable performance. On the other hand, his wife, Paula, is a multi-talented boss lady. She is a model who is renowned for being a swimsuit model for Sports Illustrated. Paula started her modeling career at the mere age of 14 after her mother prompted her to try.
It’s official for Joel Embiid and his SI swimsuit model girlfriend Anne De Paula pic.twitter.com/lTDw0wRWUG
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) October 24, 2018
Interstingly, her connection to sports is not limited to being married to an NBA star. In an interview with Fox News, Paula revealed that she does Muay Thai. In her own words, “I can kick your a–, because I do Muay Thai. I may look fragile, but I’m definitely not”. This revelation took the fans by surprise as she is a well-known model and doing Thai boxing was unexpected.
Paula started Muay Thai when she was a teenager, and back in 2017, she was practicing the sport at least three times a week. Additionally, she was a soccer player who indulged in the sport to the extreme that boys did not even look at her as a girl. However, it seems like fate played a role and she found ‘The One’ in Joel Embiid. Their love story is bound to leave everyone amazed.
Joel Embiid caught Anne de Paula’s attention because he could speak French and loved soccer
Joel Embiid and Anne de Paula met each other for the first time in 2018 at a dinner in N.Y.C. with a mutual friend who introduced them. The model spoke to ESPN about their relationship and revealed that their brewing love started with a beautiful friendship. Interestingly, she was not even aware that Embiid is a basketball player as the two barely spoke to each other at the dinner.
Furthermore, it has come to the surface that it is difficult to get her attention, but Embiid successfully did so by “Just being himself”. Paula revealed that she was not looking for anything when she was single. However, the commonalities between the two and the energy were so real that they ended up being a couple. Embiid and Paula both love to play soccer and can fluently speak French as well.
In addition to French, Anne de Paula can speak English and Portuguese. Embiid and Paula’s relationship has emerged as an example of inspirational love. Furthermore, just two years after they met, the two welcomed their son ‘Arthur Embiid‘. He is named after Joel’s younger brother who unfortunately died at the age of 13 in a car accident.