Ms Merry, 27, a model, was granted a decree nisi on the grounds of her husband's behaviour, according to court papers, but there was nothing to suggest that a third party was involved.

Henry announced that he was leaving his wife in June, coinciding the separation with his move from Arsenal to Barcelona. Ms Merry was reportedly unhappy about moving to Spain and was extremely upset when he walked out on their marriage.

None of the parties was present at the Principal Registry of the High Court's Family Division when the divorce was rubber-stamped. It will be at least six weeks before a decree absolute can be granted.

Henry is one of a long list of celebrities who has opted for a 'quickie divorce'. This process is extremely popular with famous couples as, in the case of the footballer, the process can be completed within a matter of months. The major advantage for those divorcing in the glare of the media is that neither party has to attend court.

The downside is that a 'quickie divorce' must be based upon fault, with one of them alleging either adultery or unreasonable behaviour on the part of the other. Should the couple not have wished to become involved in such unpleasantness, they would have had to have waited at least two years to divorce on the basis that they had been separated for this whole period.

Experts predict that a judge could order a 'clean break' with Ms Merry getting a lump sum of his fortune, rather than a proportion of future earnings. The house that they purchased in Hampstead, north London, for £6 million in 2002 will be sold as part of the settlement.

Ms Merry is likely to become the latest in a string of wives who have recently walked away from court with a large slice of the marital fortune, despite being married for only a short time. These wives have taken advantage of rulings by the House of Lords of two divorce cases in 2006, that of Miller and McFarlane, which paved the way for wives in short marriages being paid out huge settlements and those in long(ish) marriages to wealthy men getting half of everything.

In the case of Ms Miller, who got divorced from her husband of three years due to his infidelity, the court awarded her £5 million out of her husband's £17.5 million fortune as the judge believed that her husband's adultery should be taken into account. This was despite the established principle of family courts that adultery is not sufficiently bad conduct for the adulterer to be financially penalised.

In the case of Ms McFarlane, the House of Lords ruled that after a lengthy marriage of 16 years she could effectively have half of her husband's income to reflect the fact that she gave up a highflying City career to bring up his three children, and she could keep at least half of the family assets.

Both these cases opened the floodgates for wives of wealthy husbands to claim half of their husband's fortune, whether or not they need it.

Bu what can Henry do if he wants to protect himself financially? Keeping assets from his spouse, by placing them in his sole name, won't work, as all assets belonging to both spouses are taken into account by the divorce court.

Putting the assets into joint names also wouldn't help - and it may make matters even worse - as the judge may take the view that unless there is evidence to the contrary, assets passed from one spouse to another are considered a gift and stay that way.

The only way he can really protect himself financially is to avoid a big contested financial battle through the lawyers and the courts so that he avoids the big legal fees that such litigation always entails. Indeed, another reason for a 'quickie' divorce for a 'quickie' marriage.


The cost of other footballers' failed marriages

David James, the goalkeeper for Portsmouth and England, paid out a reported £3 million to his former wife, Tanya, in 2004. They have four children together.

John Hartson, the former Celtic striker, paid out £1.5 million to his ex-wife, Lowri, which amounted to half of his then weekly salary of £20,000.

Ray Parlour, the Arsenal midfielder, gave £1.8 million of his future earnings to his former wife, Karen, in 2004, after she argued that she played a vital role in helping him with his career.

Further information
Do your own divorce using Lawpack's Separation & Divorce Kit
Get more information on divorce with Lawpack's DIY Separation & Divorce book
How to protect yourself during divorce
How to cut down on costs during divorce