Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa: All About the Tennis Stars' Romance

The tennis pros went their separate ways in May 2024 but reconnected a couple of weeks later

Greek tennis pro Stefanos Tsitsipas and Spanish tennis star Paula Badosa are back together after calling it quits.

The couple announced that their relationship had come to an end in May 2024, one year after they confirmed they were together at Wimbledon. However, a couple of weeks later, they shared they were back on.

Tsitsipas and Badosa are known as “Tsitsidosa" — a nickname fans embraced from the couple's joint Instagram account. The two aren't shy when it comes to talking about their love in interviews.

Tsitsipas opened up about how important the relationship was to him in an interview with ESTO at the Los Cabos Open tournament in Mexico.

“I changed my life because Paula Badosa brought a bright light into it, and I did the same for her,” he said. “I’ll be completely honest, I’ve never been more excited about the future, both in my private life and in my professional life. I really want to make the most of it.”

Their friends are supportive of the relationship, too. “It’s a love story, it’s so beautiful and I'm super happy for Paula,” Aryna Sabalenka, fellow tennis pro and friend of Badosa’s, told Tennis Channel. “I spoke to her and she’s super happy and I’m happy for her.”

Here’s everything to know about Stefanos Tsitsipas and Paula Badosa’s relationship.

They teased their romance on Spotify

Tsitsipas and Badosa turned to an unexpected social media platform to hint at their relationship when it first began.

In June 2023, fans of the tennis stars noticed that they changed their respective Spotify profile pictures to new selfies with each other. On Tsitsipas’ profile, he pouted playfully while Badosa made a kissy face next to him. As for Badosa’s profile picture, it was a black-and-white shot of her sticking her tongue out while Tsitsipas smiled with his mouth wide open.

After noticing that their new profile photos had been spotted, the new couple had some fun on X (formerly Twitter).

“Waiting for the Spotify bonus after that… 💚🤷‍♀️,” Badosa posted, tagging Spotify Spain.

Shortly after, Tsitsipas quote tweeted her post and tagged Spotify Greece, writing, “Ok, so we’re going regional on this? 🙄.”

They first connected in Rome

In a Q&A with moderators and fans at the 2023 US Open in New York City, Tsitsipas told the story of how he and Badosa started dating.

He revealed that they started talking in Rome, during the Italian Open, when she was facing off against Ons Jabeur on May 12.

"I made a bet with myself. I said 'I'll send Badosa a message if she wins her second round match in Rome' and she was playing very well, so I thought 'Hey I have a good chance of achieving that today,' " Tsitsipas said.

He added, “She did end up winning the match, so I kept my promise and I messaged her, ‘Congratulations,’ and I guess you can say, that’s how it started."

Tsitsipas is the romantic one in the relationship

In a TikTok challenge filmed together, Badosa confirmed that Tsitsipas is the more romantic one in their relationship. The couple also revealed that he was the first to say "I love you" and initiated their first kiss.

Tsitsipas' sweet side seemed to extend beyond his former relationship with Badosa. When he's not on the court, the tennis star likes to make music, much of which has romantic undertones.

“I enjoy music. I feel like every person has his own identity and every person has his own taste in music,” Tsitsipas told Roland-Garros.com in 2021 after releasing a 10-track album on SoundCloud.

His lo-fi hip-hop album, titled Only Yesterday, showcases the player’s affectionate side, with songs like “Morning Cuddles” and “I Always Think Of U In The Midnight Rain.”

They almost played together at Wimbledon

Tsitsipas and Badosa weren't just romantic partners — they’ve also been paired up on the court. The duo were scheduled to play as a team in a mixed doubles match at Wimbledon in July 2023, but Badosa had to withdraw at the last minute due to a spinal injury.

Though it didn't come to fruition, Tsitsipas was excited about the opportunity to compete together.

“It’s honestly a pleasure to be doing this with people,” he said when asked about playing in doubles matches with both his girlfriend and brother, Petros Tsitsipas.

“Some of them have entered my life recently and I would have never done it if wasn’t for that so Paulita let's do it!” he added.

Badosa spoke to the Associated Press about what it was like to support Tsitsipas from the sidelines.

“Watching it from the outside, maybe I get a little bit more nervous, because I cannot control it. But I’m happy that he got the win, and it was a crazy match. Happy that we both got through first round,” she said.

They have a healthy competitive streak

Both at the top of their sport, Tsitsipas and Badosa like to use each other’s successes as benchmarks to surpass in their own careers.

During a press conference after winning the final at Los Cabos, Tsitsipas teased, "My goals are to surpass Paula's best ranking, which is world number two, and to get better than that."

But at the end of the day, they really just want to see each other succeed.

“I bring the best out of my tennis with her when I practice ... I honestly don’t even mind if she beats me. I want her to beat me. That means she’s getting better, and I want her to have an incredible career and reach world No. 1,” Tsitsipas said in a press conference at the 2023 National Bank Open in Toronto.

“My biggest dream of all is for us to do it together. To be World No. 1 one day together,” he added. “I think I can truly say that I have fulfilled my biggest, deepest desire in tennis to not just have done it myself but to have done it with a person that will be there for me for the rest of my life.”

They had a joint Instagram account

Tsitsipas and Badosa gave glimpses of their relationship on their shared Instagram account, which has since been deleted. The account's bio read, “'Best friends & soulmates. Nothing less; nothing more. 💚,' ” with both of their individual handles tagged.

Posts included photos of their travels together in N.Y.C., Greece and Dubai, as well as romantic black-and-white snaps with captions like, “Your eyes stole all my words away” and simply, “Connection.”

Badosa also used the joint account to post a birthday slideshow for Tsitsipas, writing, “I feel so lucky to share life next to you. Keep shining, keep inspiring, keep being you. Love you ❤️."

The often pair shared photos of their adventures, including when they were in New York for the US Open, where Tsitsipas competed before ultimately losing to Dominic Stricker in the second round. Badosa was also spotted cheering her then-boyfriend on in the stands during his victorious first round match against Milos Raonic.

They split in May 2024 but got back together soon after

Badosa shared the news of their split in a post on her Instagram Stories on May 5, 2024.

"After careful consideration and many cherished moments together, Stefanos and I have decided to amicably part ways," she wrote in the since-expired post, via Reuters. "We have shared a journey filled with love and learning, and it is as friends with immense mutual respect that we now choose to move forward on our own paths."

She continued, "We are grateful for the support of our friends, family, and all who have been part of our story. As we transition into this new chapter of our lives, we continue to wish each other nothing but the best in all our endeavours."

However, a couple of weeks later, both shared that they were back together just in time to compete together at the French Open mixed doubles.

“It was hard for us being apart and I was going through some hard times too. I would say that I didn’t manage it very well either, because I was feeling the pressure of the tour, of my work. It seemed like a mountain to combine these two, and I made the decision to take a break,” Tsitsipas told Greek journalist Vicky Georgatou via Tennis.com.

He continued, "After two, three weeks I realized that she is a person who has supported me a lot and when she tried to talk to me about meeting I felt how intense the love we have for each other is. I realized that this relationship I have with Paula is completely different from any other relationship I have had in the past.”

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