Britney Spears’ husband Sam Asghari says their marriage is over

Britney Spears’ husband Sam Asghari has said the pair have decided to end their “journey together” after 14 months of marriage.

A divorce petition filed on Wednesday and seen by BBC News cited “irreconcilable differences” between Mr Asghari, 29, and Ms Spears, 41.

The couple got engaged in September 2021 and were married in a small but star-studded ceremony in June 2022.

Rumours of their marital struggles were reported in US tabloids this year.

Ms Spears became a global superstar after her song …Baby One More Time was released when she was just 16. She went on to have hits including Toxic, Womanizer and Oops!…I Did It Again.

In a post on Instagram, Mr Asghari said: “After 6 years of love and commitment to each other my wife and I have decided to end our journey together.

“We will hold onto the love and respect we have for each other and I wish her the best always.

“Shit happens.

“Asking for privacy seems rediculous [sic] so I will just ask for everyone including media to be kind and thoughtful.”

Representatives for Ms Spears have not yet commented.

The musician did not address the divorce in a Wednesday night post to her 42 million Instagram followers, instead writing that she was “buying a horse soon”.

According to the dissolution of marriage petition filed by Mr Asghari in Los Angeles County Superior Court, he asks that spousal support and attorneys’ fees be paid by Ms Spears.

The Iranian-American actor, model and fitness trainer met Ms Spears while she was shooting the video for her song Slumber Party in 2016.

He was a vocal supporter of her efforts to end her father Jamie’s conservatorship, a fight she won just months before their marriage.

Their wedding last year, at the superstar’s home in Thousand Oaks, California, was an intimate and lavish affair attended by celebrities including Paris Hilton, Madonna and Drew Barrymore.

The two had recently been seen without their wedding rings in public.

The separation comes as Ms Spears prepares to publish her memoir – The Woman in Me – this October.

It marks the end of her third marriage.

In 2004, she married childhood friend Jason Alexander for 55 hours in Las Vegas, before she annulled the nuptials at the urging of her management team.

Mr Alexander, who was seen participating in the pro-Trump riot at the US Capitol in Washington DC in January 2021, attempted to crash Ms Spears’ wedding to Mr Asghari hours before they tied the knot.

He was charged with trespassing, vandalism and two counts of battery, and has been court-ordered to stay away from her.

Ms Spears’ second marriage – to rapper Kevin Federline – lasted from 2004 to 2007. Mr Federline retains sole custody of their two children, Jayden James and Sean Preston.