Roger Federer may have officially hung up his racket in 2022, but the dad of four says his life is still extremely busy — it’s just more of a dad kind of busy.
“Four children is a lot of work!” he tells PEOPLE with a laugh. “We have twin boys that are 10, and twin girls that are almost 15. So now I feel like it’s also a very vital time to be around them and to help them, guide them, and obviously let them also fly on their own, especially the girls.”
Federer says he loves that he gets to be with wife Mirka and the kids in the morning now, as well as when they get home from school.
“I used to have to sleep in in the mornings because of late matches or whatever. It’s completely different now,” he says. “I get to wake up when the kids do and help get them ready.”
Roger Federer Says One of His Four Children Is ‘Getting Serious’ About Playing Tennis (Exclusive)
After he puts in his work with his various brand ambassadorships, his federation and his latest project, the Prime video documentary Federer: Twelve Final Days (June 20), he’s back in dad mode.
“Then I get to connect with the kids again over their sports and homework,” he says.
The past year was also full of family vacations, including a trip to Dubai, and he also took the children to Lesotho, the small country in South Africa where he builds schools through his Roger Federer Foundation.
“It’s not all rhinos and giraffes in that part of the world, it’s a very different part of Africa. It was nice for the kids to see. I try to inspire them as well, with the philanthropic work we do.”
Mirka Federer, wife of Roger Federer with their children nine-year-old twin girls Charlene and Myla and five-year-old boys Lenny and Leo during presentations after Roger Federer of Switzerland loss against Novak Djokovic of Serbia during the Men’s Singles Final on Centre Court during the Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club at Wimbledon on July 14, 2019 in London, England.
Mirka Federer and the kids at Wimbledon in 2019. Tim Clayton/Corbis via Getty
Federer is already thinking ahead to the rest of his summer. He recently took the family to watch him give the commencement speech at Dartmouth before he dashed to London for the premiere of Twelve Final Days.
Perhaps they’ll take a family vacation to Italy, and maybe he’ll bring the kids back to Wimbledon in July to walk the courts and revisit their old stomping grounds.