Gisele Bündchen delighted fans on Sunday with a surprise appearance at the 2026 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.
The 46-year-old Brazilian supermodel opened the show in a sizzling pre-recorded clip, lounging on a sofa in peach lace lingerie and the brand’s signature pink-and-white striped silk robe.
“Are you ready for the show?” Bündchen asked in the segment, which aired moments before Bella Hadid launched the star-studded runway. The event also featured Kylie Jenner’s Victoria’s Secret debut in a $50 million Fantasy Bra.
The supermodel appeared again at the close of the show, hinting at a possible future partnership with the lingerie brand.
“Wasn’t that amazing? You’re gonna be seeing more of me real soon,” the former Victoria’s Secret Angel said with a wink to the camera.
Bundchen did not walk this year’s runway, as days prior she was seen wearing a black medical boot on her right ankle amid what appeared to be a foot injury, in photos obtained by Page Six.
The surprise appearance marked 20 years since Bündchen last walked in the Victoria’s Secret show in 2006.
Gisele Bündchen, 46, delighted fans with a surprise appearance at the 2026 Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show on Sunday
The Brazilian supermodel opened the show in a pre-recorded segment while relaxing on a sofa in peach lace lingerie
Bündchen made her Victoria’s Secret debut in 1999, when she was 19.
The following year, she signed a record-breaking $25 million contract with the brand.
She became a fixture on the Victoria’s Secret runway for six years and famously wore the Red Hot Fantasy Bra in 2000.
Being chosen to wear the Fantasy Bra is regarded as one of the highest honors a supermodel can receive.
Bündchen showcased the lavish design, which featured 1,300 diamonds and Thai rubies, in the Victoria’s Secret holiday catalog rather than on the runway.
Priced at $15 million, the bra was the most expensive Fantasy Bra ever made at the time. That record was later eclipsed by Jenner, who walked Sunday in a $50 million diamond-covered design by Jacob & Co. It featured a $22 million yellow diamond centerpiece along with 4,410 other natural diamonds.
The show marked the first time Victoria’s Secret had featured the Fantasy Bra on its runway since 2018. Jenner also became the first non-Angel to model the renowned piece.
Jenner’s appearance in the coveted bra drew criticism from some fans. One person wrote on X that it was “a smack in the face to the actual models who worked hard.”
Bündchen’s Fantasy Bra previously held the Guinness World Record for the most expensive piece of lingerie ever created, retaining the title until 2006.
Bündchen did not walk in this year’s show; photos taken Friday showed her using crutches with a black medical boot secured around her right ankle amid an apparent foot injury
Her appearance came two decades after she last walked in the Victoria’s Secret show in 2006
“Are you ready for the show?” Bündchen asked in the clip, which aired just before Bella Hadid opened the star-studded runway
The bombshell returned at the end of the show with another cameo, where she teased that viewers would be ‘seeing more of me real soon’
The beauty made her Victoria’s Secret debut at the age of 19 in 1999. She remained a staple on the Victoria’s Secret catwalk for six years; Bundchen walks the runway in 2005
She famously wore the Red Hot Fantasy Bra in 2000. At $15 million, the piece held the crown for the most expensive Fantasy Bra ever made at the time
That record was dwarfed by reality TV star Kylie Jenner on Sunday, after she hit the runway in a $50 million diamond-covered design
The tradition kicked off in 1996, when Claudia Schiffer debuted the first-ever Fantasy Bra, valued at $1 million, in a Victoria’s Secret advertising campaign.
Other past models who have worn the iconic bra also include Heidi Klum, Adriana Lima, Alessandra Ambrosio, Tyra Banks and Candice Swanepoel.
Though it’s been 20 years since Bundchen walked the Victoria’s Secret runway, she did appear in the brand’s print campaign in 2023 with fellow models Adriana Lima and Naomi Campbell.
Bundchen announced her retirement from modeling and walked her last fashion show in 2015.
The model previously spoke about feeling ill at ease modeling lingerie as the years went by.
‘For the first five years, I felt comfortable modeling in lingerie, but as time went on, I felt less and less at ease being photographed walking the runway wearing just a bikini or a thong,’ she wrote in her 2018 memoir Lessons: My Path to a Meaningful Life, as per The Independent, adding, ‘Give me a tail, a cape, wings – please, anything to cover me up a little!’
‘I was at a different place in my life, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to continue working there,’ she wrote about why she ultimately decided to not renew her contract with the brand.
In recent years the star has been busy with motherhood. She welcomed her third child – a baby boy – with husband Joaquim Valente, 38, when she was 44.
The event got off to a show-stopping start as Bella Hadid, 30, strutted down the runway
She was soon joined by sister Gigi Hadid, 31, who wowed in a pair of silver fringe wings
Victoria’s Secret’s veteran Adriana Lima, 45, flaunted her incredible figure in a lace lime bodysuit
South African model Candice Swanepoel, 37, showed off her bronzed glow in a white bra and panties
Alessandra Ambrosio, 45, looked angelic with incredible sparkling wings
She also has daughter Vivian, 13, and son Benjamin, 16, with ex-husband Tom Brady, 49.
In December 2025, Bundchen and Valente privately tied the knot after nearly two years of dating. Bundchen and Valente’s wedding ceremony came three years after her publicized split from Brady.
The Victoria’s Secret show returned to Los Angeles for the first time in 19 years on Sunday and featured some of the brand’s biggest bombshells, including supermodel sisters Gigi and Bella Hadid, VS veteran Adriana Lima, 45, Swedish beauty Elsa Hosk, 37, and new mom Barbara Palvin, 33.
South African model Candice Swanepoel, 37, was also among the bombshells, along with Alessandra Ambrosio, 45, Leonardo DiCaprio’s longtime girlfriend Vittoria Ceretti, 28, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, 39, Russian superstar Irina Shayk, 40, and plus size beauty Ashley Graham, 38.
The iconic event featured musical performances from Megan Thee Stallion, Katseye, Megan Moroney and Tate McRae.
A major moment was the reveal and runway debut of Victoria’s Secret’s newest Angel, Solange Omon, who was recently discovered through the brand’s YouTube streaming series Angels Among Us.
The show marked its third year back following a six-year hiatus that threatened the future of the iconic lingerie brand.
It first kicked off in 1995 and immediately attracted immense buzz, with some of the biggest models on the globe walking in the fashion show.
By 2001 it was being broadcast live on television, and each year, millions tuned in to watch the stunning models strut their stuff and the A-list performers dazzle on stage.
But in 2019, after more than two decades of it reigning supreme, the annual show was canceled amidst immense criticism over the brand’s lack of diversity when it comes to body types before then-chief marketing officer Ed Razek’s eyebrow-raising comments about trans and plus-sized models.
Megan Thee Stallion had all eyes on her as she performed at the event
Country darling Megan Moroney also performed at the show
Singer Tate McRae sizzled in red lingerie as she hit the stage
Katseye performed during the PINK section of the runway show, wearing matching mini skirts and corsets
In 2024, the Angels returned to the catwalk after a six year hiatus with a more diverse roster including plus-size models, such as Ashley Graham, and transgender models.
However, the show was derided as lackluster and lacking the traditional glamour for which the brand was known.
By 2025, Victoria’s Secret’s new CEO Hillary Super announced plans to return to its ‘unapologetically sexy’ branding and move away from its woke rebrand.
The lingerie company embraced its bombshell roots after years of struggling sales and a tepid response to its diverse catwalk the year prior.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: NYC Woman, 21, Dies After Hospital Visit for Broken Ankle, Lawsuit Says