With the dramatically beautiful setting of Portofino behind them, Boris Becker makes his love match with Lilian de Carvalho Monteiro official. "It was authentic, it was real and it was a magical weekend I will never forget," the former tennis champion exclusively tells HELLO! of their spectacular wedding ceremony in Italy. "Everybody cried, including me."
The newlyweds, who have been dating since 2019, tied the knot in front of 100 of their closest family and friends as part of a lavish three-day celebration. The couple, who live in Italy, decided to hold their nuptials in Portofino after falling in love with the picturesque resort during many happy weekends there.
"It’s one of the most romantic places I have been to," Boris tells us. "We live in Italy and we went to Portofino a few times last summer. We could have chosen Venice, Rome or Lake Como, but our strongest attachment was to Portofino.
"The location where we had the ceremony is, I think, one of the most unique places I have been in my life – and trust me, I have been to a lot of beautiful places!"
The former Wimbledon champion, 56, tells us that his love for his bride, 33, was cemented following his conviction for irregularities in his insolvency in 2022. He spent eight months in prison after being found guilty of hiding £2.5m in assets and loans during a bankruptcy proceeding.
"As they say in wedding ceremonies, in good and in bad days, you have to find a way to stick together. We certainly had very difficult days, because my personal situation was very challenging, but that’s really when I got to know my true friends and my partner for life," he says.
"Sometimes you need to be tested to find out who your true friends are, or your partner, and it happened for me. And I realised who was with me and who was not with me. Lilian was number one."
To read the full exclusive and to see more photos, pick up the latest issue of HELLO! on sale in the UK on Monday. You can subscribe to HELLO! to get the magazine delivered free to your door every week or purchase the digital edition online via our Apple or Google apps.