Madonna and Guy Ritchie to divorce

By Mike Collett-White

LONDON (Reuters) - U.S. pop star Madonna and film director Guy Ritchie have agreed to divorce, they announced on Wednesday, ending nearly eight years of marriage and months of tabloid speculation over their relationship.

The celebrity couple, who have a joint fortune estimated at around $525 million (302 million pounds), have yet to reach a final settlement on the terms of the split.

"Madonna and Guy Ritchie have agreed to divorce after 7-l/2 years of marriage," Madonna's representatives in New York and London said in a brief statement.

"They have both requested that the media maintain respect for their family at this difficult time. A final settlement has not been agreed upon yet."

The couple have a son, Rocco, who was several months old on their wedding day in December 2000.

In 2006 Madonna applied to adopt David Banda, a boy from Malawi whose mother died shortly after his birth. The adoption was approved by a court in Malawi in May.

Madonna also has a daughter named Lourdes, born in 1996, from the pop singer's relationship with fitness trainer Carlos Leon. She was married once before, to actor Sean Penn, in the 1980s.

Rumours that the London-based couple planned to split have been circulating for months, fuelled by reports in the summer that the singer had lined up Fiona Shackleton, a lawyer who acted for former Beatle Paul McCartney in his recent divorce.