Gisele Bündchen Says Tom Brady Marriage Was Falling Apart Before Retirement Saga

Gisele Bündchen says her marriage with Tom Brady was on the rocks long before he went back and forth on his football future ... claiming his career was just one of their problems that led to "the death of my dream."

The 42-year-old supermodel addressed the rumors surrounding her breakup from the 7-time Super Bowl champion in an interview with Vanity Fair ... and she denied ever forcing Brady to choose between their marriage and his profession -- calling the reports "the craziest thing I've ever heard."

In fact, Gisele said she will always support Brady in whatever makes him happy ... and she wants "all his dreams to come true."

While Gisele is rebutting any sort of ultimatum, she is not flat-out denying football had anything to do with their split -- "What’s been said is one piece of a much bigger puzzle," she told the outlet. "It’s not so black and white."

Gisele explained the two started to grow apart from who they were and what they wanted when they met in their late 20s ... and they ultimately had different visions for their future.

"When you love someone, you don’t put them in a jail and say, 'You have to live this life,'" Gisele said. "You set them free to be who they are, and if you want to fly the same direction, then that’s amazing."

"We’re not playing against each other. We are a team ... and that’s beautiful. I look back and I have no regrets. I loved every bit of it."

As for her dating life, Gisele shot down reports she's seeing billionaire Jeffrey Soffer ... saying the guy is Tom's friend, and she believes the story was planted to make her look bad.