Tim Tebow and Wife Demi-Leigh Tebow Worked Through ‘Language Barrier’ When They First Met

Tim Tebow and wife Demi-Leigh Tebow have been happily married for four years now, but that doesn’t mean they didn’t face challenges early in their romance.

Demi-Leigh, 29, exclusively reveals in the new issue of Us Weekly that she and the retired quarterback, 36, had to overcome a “language barrier” when they first met.

“Loving in a second language is different,” explains Demi-Leigh, who is from South Africa. “Remember the first time after our first date, I told you, ‘Keep well,’ and you thought I was dismissing you?"

Tim recalled the moment all too well, telling Us , “Her first language is Afrikaans, not English. I was like, ‘Keep well?’ … I don’t know if I’m going to see you again!’”

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The duo first connected in 2018 at the Tim Tebow Foundation’s annual event Night to Shine, which serves as a prom for people with special needs.

“Demi had a little sister with severe special needs. [She] was kind of our matchmaker,” Tim says of his wife’s sister Franje, who had cerebellar agenesis and died in May 2019. “Demi and her family were invited [to Night of Shine], but unfortunately her sister was too sick to go. But through that, we connected and never stopped talking.”

Tim and Demi-Leigh have made philanthropic work a central part of their lives since tying the knot in 2020. In addition to their work with the special needs community, they also aid in the fight against human trafficking. Asked whether he and Demi-Leigh bonded over their shared passion for helping others, Tim tells Us , “I don’t know if she was inspired by me, but I was inspired by her.”

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The former Denver Broncos star adds that he is “so excited” for his wife to continue inspiring people with her memoir, A Crown That Lasts , which hits shelves on August 13. In the book, the former Miss Universe reflects on her pageant career and basing her self-worth on fleeting markers of success.

“[It took] so much courage to write about the hard moments in her life,” Tim says of Demi-Leigh’s achievement, noting that he thinks the book will “be a great encouragement” to other women.

Demi-Leigh, meanwhile, is appreciative of Tim’s support throughout the writing process.

“I’m so grateful [I had] a sounding board. There [were] nights of writing from 7 p.m. to, like, three in the morning,” she shares. “He’d just [make] me a hot bath with some Epsom salt.”

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Tim previously praised Demi-Leigh’s memoir in a March Instagram post .

“I know this message will be life changing for so many, me included! I pray it impacts anyone who may have also planted their identity in something temporary and needs a reminder that no label a person gives you compares to what God calls you: son or daughter of the King,” he wrote alongside a photo of him and Demi-Leigh taken right after she handed off her Miss Universe crown to her successor, Catriona Gray , in December 2018.

“Demi, I’m so proud of you and how far you have come,” Tim continued. “In my eyes you are more ‘Miss Universe’ now than you were when you carried the title.”

For more on Tim and Demi-Leigh, watch the video above and pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly , on newsstands now.