Gerard Pique and Shakira have found themselves back in a legal standoff four years after their high-profile separation. The former Barcelona captain and the Colombian pop icon appeared before a judge this week to discuss a proposed modification to their existing custody arrangement.
Fresh legal battle in Barcelona
The long-running saga between Pique and Shakira has taken a new turn in the courtrooms of Catalonia. On Tuesday, October 6, 2026, the pair arrived at the City of Justice in Barcelona for a hearing that had been kept strictly under wraps by both legal teams.
While the initial custody agreement reached in late 2022 allowed Shakira to relocate to the United States with the children, the practicalities of the transatlantic divide have prompted this new legal request. The singer, who has recently been based in Madrid during her latest tour, traveled back to her former home city to argue that the current visitation schedule places an undue burden on the minors. According to reports from El Mundo, the atmosphere was professional but tense as both parties personally attended the proceedings rather than delegating the matter entirely to their respective attorneys.
The primary focus of this specific legal challenge is the travel routine for the children during shorter school breaks. Shakira is reportedly asking the judge to reconsider the "regime of visits" to ensure that the children do not have to spend a significant portion of their time off flying between Miami and Barcelona.
Shared travel responsibility
Central to Shakira’s argument is the belief that the physical toll of long-haul travel should not fall exclusively on the shoulders of Milan and Sasha. Her legal team has put forward a proposal where the responsibility for bridging the gap between Spain and the United States is shared more equitably between the two parents. The singer’s representatives released a statement explaining that "the objective is that the effort of traveling between Miami and Barcelona does not fall solely on them."
Specifically, for vacations that only last a few days, Shakira is requesting that Pique be the one to travel to Miami to see the children. This would allow the boys to remain in their home environment and avoid the jet lag and disruption that comes with crossing the Atlantic for a short stay.
Protecting the children's routine
The global music sensation has consistently maintained that her priority is the stability and well-being of her sons. In the documents submitted to the court, her lawyers emphasized that the proposed changes would allow the children to "maintain during more time their school, social, and family routine," ensuring they are not constantly in transit.
Her team was quick to dismiss any suggestions that this was a move to alienate the former Manchester United and Barcelona center-back. They stated clearly that the petition does not seek to "reduce the time that the children spend with their father," but rather to reorganize how that time is facilitated to protect the boys' academic and emotional health.