Sai o Papa do futebol e entra o Papa do tênis; Vaticano conta até com quadra esportiva

Journalist Vitor Netto collaborates with columnist Rodrigo Lopes, the main editor of this section.

Pope Leo XIV welcomed the world’s top-ranked tennis player, Italian Jannik Sinner. The athlete is in the city to compete in the Masters 1000 in Rome after being sidelined for three months due to a doping sanction. The Pontiff is an avid tennis admirer, with the sport being regarded as his favorite.

During their meeting on Wednesday (14), Sinner gifted the Pope one of his rackets and playfully invited him to join for a match:

— The ball is right here! If you’d like to play a bit…

— But we might break something here! Better not.

In fact, the American paper The New York Times recently reported that the Vatican has its own tennis court located within its walls. The facility is situated between the corners of Viale Vaticano and Via Leone IV. The piece mentions that the “golden age of Vatican tennis” was in the late 1970s, featuring players like Giovanni Battista Re, the current cardinal dean who conducted the funeral for Pope Francis.

However, this is not the first time the Catholic Church has had a leader associated with sports. Francis was well-known for his passion for soccer.

He held such a fondness for San Lorenzo, a team from Buenos Aires, that even while living far away, he remained a member of the club.

Francis has often shared his love for sports and welcomed visits from prominent football figures. In 2016, he met with Argentina’s football legend, Maradona, and Brazilian superstar Ronaldinho Gaúcho on two occasions.

However, the Argentine did not watch games on TV due to a vow he made in the early 1990s.

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