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| Rio Ferdinand and Rebecca Ellison |
Rio Ferdinand's wife Rebecca has tragically died after a short battle with breast cancer.
The QPR defender issued a statement on the club's official website on Saturday after his beloved partner lost her battle.
He said: "My soul mate slipped away last night. Rebecca, my wonderful wife, passed away peacefully after a short battle with cancer."
Tributes are flooding in for the footie ace's partner and mother of his three children.
The pair met in the 90s, when she worked as an accountant and he was an up-and-coming footballer.
The pair welcomed their first child, a son, Lorenz, in 2006. A year later he proposed to her on a holiday to Las Vegas.
In 2008, they welcomed a second son, Tate.
In 2009 they tied the knot in an intimate ceremony on the luxurious Peter Island.
The couple refused a number of lucrative deals from magazines for the exclusive rights to their photos.
"I get offered a lot of things, often a lot more financially rewarding than this, but I don't take up 90% of them. I only do things that interest me. Hello! and OK! magazine don't interest me," Rio told the Guardian some years ago.
"I don't do stuff like that," he says. "It's not my game."
A year on they welcomed their first daughter, Tia, now aged four.
The couple, who lived in Alderley Edge, Cheshire, did their best to keep their relationship out of the limelight.
Rebecca was treated at specialist cancer treatment hospital the Royal Marsden in the weeks before her death.
Rio made an emotional statement via the QPR website on Saturday morning.
"She was a fantastic loving mother to our three beautiful children. She will be missed as a wife, sister, aunt, daughter and granddaughter. She will live on in our memory, as a guide and inspiration.
"Myself, my parents Janice and Julian, along with Rebecca's parents Lesley and Stephen, would like to thank our families, friends and my club colleagues who have rallied around in these desperate days, weeks and months.
"I would also like to express my gratitude for the dedication and expertise of the staff led by Professors Johnstone and Clarke at the Royal Marsden.
"Their valiant efforts to prolong Rebecca's all-too-short life will not be forgotten.
"Our grief, as a family, is total. We would appreciate being allowed to mourn privately."
QPR added: "The thoughts of everyone at Queens Park Rangers Football Club are with Rio and his family at this immensely difficult time. We'll be bringing you tributes and reaction to the sad news."
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