Jennifer Lopez and Alex Rodriguez officially go their separate ways.
The performing sensation and former baseball slugger, who has been a couple since 2017, have discontinued their two-year engagement and will focus on staying friends.
The two announced the news in an exclusive joint statement to TODAY.
We realized we are better than friends and look forward to staying that way. We will continue to work together and support each other on our shared businesses and projects. We wish the best for each other and each other’s children. Out of respect for them, the only other comment we have to say is thank you to everyone who sent kind words and support.
Reports circulated for the first time in March that they had stopped their engagement, but several sources at the time said TODAY that the two “never officially split up” and were still together.
“They hit a rough patch that made them think about what they should do,” the sources said, adding that it was difficult for the couple to see each other amid COVID-19 restrictions while Lopez (51) in the Dominican Republic and Rodriguez, 45, was in Miami.
“All the reports are inaccurate. We are working through some things, ”Lopez and Rodriguez also said in a joint statement to TODAY in March.
However, rumors of dissolution surfaced again earlier this week when Lopez shared a series of selfies from the set of her new film, “Shotgun Wedding”, and her engagement ring is missing from the photos.
Lopez and Rodriguez announced their engagement in March 2019 after two years of dating. Rodriguez proposed in the Bahamas.
Lopez was previously married to Ojani Noa (1997–1998), Cris Judd (2001–2003) and Marc Anthony (2004–2014), who share his 13-year-old twins, Max and Emme.
In 2018, she opens Sunday TODAY about her special bond with Rodriguez in an interview with Willie Geist.
“He has brought something into my life that I have never had before, which is an unconditional support and love, a kind of twin soul,” she said. ‘It’s a different thing for me – now I know what it’s like to be with me. He works just as much as I do, he’s just as driven as I am. ‘
Rodriguez is the father of daughters Natasha (16) and Ella (12) with ex-wife Cynthia Scurtis, and he and Lopez shared some of their joyous moments as a mixed family on social media.
“Kids are so beautiful and open to love and new friends,” Lopez told People in 2018.
“I loved his children so much, and he loved me so much and accepted me, and they immediately embraced each other,” she added.
Last year, Lopez visited TODAY and told Hoda Kotb that their wedding plans have been suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“I’m a little sad because we had great plans,” she said. “I’m also like, ‘You know what? God has a bigger plan. ‘”