Pope Francis and Soccer

Pope Francis is a big soccer fan, with San Lorenzo in his native Argentina being his favorite team. Over the years, the Pope hosted teams and players at the Vatican while also being the recipient of a handful of personalized jerseys from clubs and national teams all over the world. Here are photos of Pope Francis's foray into soccer.

Pope Francis and Soccer

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Argentina's Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio (now Pope Francis) poses with the San Lorenzo team emblem, which he supports in Buenos Aires, on May 24, 2011.

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Pope Francis is given a San Lorenzo jersey as he greets the faithful prior to his first 'Urbi et Orbi' blessing from the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica during Easter Mass on March 31, 2013 in Vatican City.

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Argentina's San Lorenzo team poses with a huge flag behind them with an image of Pope Francis before the start of their match against Newell's Old Boys on March 31, 2013 in Buenos Aires.

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Pope Francis talks with Juventus team president Andrea Agnelli (left) and coach Antonio Conte (right) during their audience at The Vatican on May 21, 2013 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis receives an autographed Juventus jersey from captain Gianluigi Buffon (right) and coach Antonio Conte at the end of their audience at The Vatican on May 21, 2013 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis exchanges gifts with Gianluigi Buffon of Italy's national team during an audience at The Vatican on August 13, 2013 in Vatican City.

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Mario Balotelli of Italy's national team shakes hands with Pope Francis during an audience at The Vatican on August 13, 2013 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis holds an autographed soccer ball from Italy's national team during an audience at The Vatican on August 13, 2013 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis exchanges gifts with Lionel Messi and Gianluigi Buffon of Italy's national team during an audience at The Vatican on August 13, 2013 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis welcomes Stephan El Shaarawy of Italy's national team during an audience at The Vatican on August 13, 2013 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis smiles as he receives a jersey from FIFA President Sepp Blatter during a private audience at The Vatican on November 22, 2013 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis shakes hands with Antonio Cassano of FC Parma during an audience at The Vatican on February 1, 2014 in Vatican City.

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An Argentina fan holds a flag with a portrait of Pope Francis prior to a Group F football match between Argentina and Iran at the Mineirao Stadium in Belo Horizonte during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil on June 21, 2014.

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Argentina's supporters hold a banner depicting Pope Francis, Diego Maradona and Lionel Messi as they wait for the arrival of Argentinian players outside the Beira-Rio Stadium in Porto Alegre, on June 24, 2014, on the eve of a Group F football match between Argentina and Nigeria during the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.

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Argentina fans hold posters of Lionel Messi, Pope Francis and Diego Maradona prior to the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil Round of 16 match between Argentina and Switzerland at Arena de Sao Paulo on July 1, 2014 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

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A banner with the image of Pope Francis hangs from a stand of Pedro Bidegain stadium in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on August 13, 2014 during the Copa Libertadores 2014 second leg football final between Argentina's San Lorenzo and Paraguay's Nacional.

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Pope Francis receives the Copa Libertadores trophy from Matias Lammens as he meets members of the San Lorenzo team during his weekly public audience on August 19, 2014 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis receives a jersey from Diego Maradona during an audience with the players of the 'Partita Interreligiosa Della Pace' at Paul VI Hall before the Interreligious Match For Peace at Olimpico Stadium on September 1, 2014 in Rome.

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Pope Francis takes a group photo with the players of the 'Partita Interreligiosa Della Pace' at Paul VI Hall on September 1, 2014 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis shakes hands with Arjen Robben of FC Bayern Muenchen during a private audience at The Vatican October 22, 2014 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis shakes hands with Manuel Neuer of FC Bayern Muenchen during a private audience at The Vatican October 22, 2014 in Vatican City.

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(From left) Philipp Lahm, Manuel Neuer and CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge of FC Bayern Muenchen present Pope Francis a team jersey during a private audience at The Vatican October 22, 2014 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis shakes hands with Robert Lewandowski of FC Bayern Muenchen during a private audience at The Vatican October 22, 2014 in Vatican City.

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Pope Francis shakes hands with Xabi Alonso of FC Bayern Muenchen during a private audience at The Vatican October 22, 2014 in Vatican City.

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A banner depicting Diego Maradona, Pope Francis and Lionel Messi hangs before the start of Argentina's Copa America semifinal match against Paraguay on June 30, 2015 in Concepcion, Chile.

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Spanish club Villarreal visits the Vatican prior to a Europa League match against AS Roma.