Tom Brady is Irina Shayk’s second choice after Bradley Cooper in this A-list love triangle, report says

Right now, Tom Brady is single and available, and supermodel Irina Shayk is having some fun, but she’s only biding her time with the retired NFL star until she can get Bradley Cooper to commit to marriage.

That’s the scenario offered up by an insider to Page Six, and it almost sounds like the plot for a bad 1960s sex comedy or the kind of 2000s rom-com that Cooper himself could have starred in.

The source spoke out about “the world’s best-looking love triangle” after the Russian-born model, 37, was photographed rushing into Brady’s New York City apartment earlier this week. Shayk’s visit came two weeks weeks after she reconnected with Cooper, 48, in Italy, where they were photographed on vacation with their 6-year-old daughter.

When it comes to Brady versus Cooper, the source told Page Six that Shayk is still hoping to tie the knot and settle down with the “Maestro” star. She and the actor/director dated from 2015 to 2019, share daughter Lea de Seine and have reportedly continued an on-off romance while they co-parent her.

“Years have been put into the relationship,” the source told Page Six. But Shayk will continue to spend time with Brady if Cooper isn’t going to “lock things down” with her, the source added.

Could it be that Shayk is actually using Brady to make Cooper jealous?  That’s a theory also put forward by the DailyMail.com, which cited its own source who said that Cooper is “bothered” by her relationship with the seven-time Super Bowl champion and is “terrified” he might “take her heart away from him forever.”

“To say he is not bothered by this would be a lie,” the source said about Cooper. “He has been on and off and on with Irina and he has so much love for her.”

Shayk and Brady, 46, were first romantically linked in June, after the supermodel “threw herself” at the San Mateo-born NFL great when they both attended the Italian wedding of billionaire art dealer Joe Nahmad, Page Six reported. Shayk and Brady have been seen together multiple times since, in Los Angeles, London and now in New York City.

In mid-August, Shayk and Brady enjoyed a 48-hour rendezvous in a London hotel, and a source told DailyMail.com at the time that “Tom is really ecstatic that this is happening.” He feels that he and Shayk “totally get each other,” the source said. Brady also finds Shayk to be “extremely interesting, entrepreneurial” and to have “a clever sense of humor that really appeals to everything he is all about.”

Of course, Brady has the time to pursue Shayk. He and Gisele Bundchen, another entrepreneurial-minded supermodel, announced the end of their 13-year marriage in October 2022. (They share two children, ages 13 and 10, and Brady has a 15-year-old son with actor Bridget Moynahan.)  A few months after Brady and Bundchen’s divorce announcement, the long-time New England Patriots quarterback said he was retiring from football for good.

“He always told himself after his divorce that he would only get involved with someone (with whom) a future could be made, someone he could eventually introduce to his kids,” the source told DailyMail.com about how Brady’s views on Shayk. “He really thinks very highly of her and where this relationship could go. …  They seem to get each other and get along quite well.”

Shayk also has been a source of support for Brady, who is dealing with “anxiety” over the end of his 20-year football career, DailyMail.com reported.

“The new relationship is going so great for many reasons, but one main reason is that she takes his mind away from the field,” the source also said. “He misses the NFL, he misses playing but he isn’t going back, and thanks to Irina his attention can be directed to her, and he is using the free time he has to build their relationship into something special.”

But a couple weeks after Shayk and Brady’s London get-together, the supermodel was spotted in Italy with Cooper, Page Six reported. The Academy Award-nominee had to be in Italy to check the vision and sound of his new Leonard Bernstein biopic, “Maestro,” which premiered at the Venice Film Festival.

Cooper himself didn’t attend to premiere due to the ongoing actors strike, but he was photographed with Shayk, looking affectionate with her, as they rode a boat with their daughter, Page Six said. 

Last year, Cooper and Shayk’s relationship looked like it was back on, with the two enjoying a romantic walk together in New York City and posing for a sexy Halloween party photo. Page Six reported that the ex-couple tried to rekindle their relationship at the time, but it did not pan out.

Shayk’s supposed idea of using Brady to win back Cooper may not pan out either, according to Page Six sources.  For one thing, they say Brady isn’t that interested in a settling down with anyone right now, including Shayk.

“Brady is not interested in being serious with anyone right now,” a source told Page Six. “His priorities are his kids and his business interests. There will be more supermodels in his future.”

Meanwhile, another source told Page Six that Cooper actually isn’t bothered by Shayk seeing Brady, saying that his romance with her ended some time ago.

“They are co-parents and that’s that,” the source said. “They are best friends. They are happy. Brad really likes Tom, and there is nothing but support.”