Inside Pope Leo XIV's surprising sports fandom: What we know about new pope's support of Villanova basketball, Chicago White Sox
Catholic cardinals elected a new pope Thursday — the first American pope ever — and he's a sports fan. Robert Francis Prevost, a Chicago native, was selected to be the 267th pope. He'll go by Pope Leo XIV.
It's not a new or unique thing for a pope to be a sports fan. Pope Francis was a supporter of San Lorenzo, one of the oldest clubs in the Argentine Football Association. Pope Francis was born in Argentina and remained a fan during his papacy. The team even visited the Vatican twice during Pope Francis' tenure as pope.
So, with Prevost being the first pope from the United States, it's only natural to wonder whether we could see any of his favorite teams make the trip to Vatican City.
The most likely pick would be Villanova basketball. Prevost got his Bachelor's degree from Villanova and retweeted a celebratory post after the men's basketball team won the national championship in 2016.
The NCAA was very quick to make sure everyone knew Prevost's connection to Villanova.
Villanova officially has representation in Vatican City 🇻🇦⛪️ pic.twitter.com/w9VAuAPMBS
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) May 8, 2025
Another person who was excited about that development was director and notorious New York Knicks fan Spike Lee, who believes his team is in for a "holy blessing" since multiple former Villanova basketball players, including Jalen Brunson, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo. (All but DiVincenzo currently play for the Knicks).
As for Prevost's other sports fandoms, many have speculated about his hometown allegiances. Is he a fan of the Chicago Bears? Which Chicago-based baseball team does he support?
Prevost has apparently never tweeted about any professional sports team in Chicago. And while it was mentioned on ABC that Prevost roots for the Cubs even though he's from the South Side of Chicago, his brother told WGN News that he "was never, ever a Cubs fan," and "always a Sox fan." His brother said that their mother was a Cubs fan, and their father was a Cardinals fan.
Obviously the biggest question surrounding Chicago native Robert Prevost now that he is Pope Leo XIV: Cubs or White Sox? His brother gave the definitive answer to @WGNNews' @DanaRebikWGN pic.twitter.com/DvMiGZ0qHY
— Josh Frydman (@Josh_Frydman) May 8, 2025
Prevost is a supporter of St. Rita — a high school on the Southwest Side of Chicago. He retweeted a post about the team's appearance in the Illinois state championship in 2014, and served as a substitute physics teacher at the school in the past, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
IL State Championship this eve between and @StRitaBaseball and @CelticProvy - All Augustinian Final! Go Celtics and Mustangs!! #proud
— Midwest Augustinians (@mwaugustinians) June 14, 2014
No matter which baseball team he supports, people will likely be curious about his thoughts on the Chicago Bears and quarterback Caleb Williams.
Either way, he knows something about compassion, and that should serve him well in his new role.
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