Napoli’s Title Celebrations Continue with Vatican Meeting and Papal Blessing
Napoli, the newly crowned Serie A champions, continued their title celebrations on Tuesday with a meeting at the Vatican with Pope Leo XIV. The Italian club, captained by Giovanni Di Lorenzo and featuring player of the season Scott McTominay, were welcomed to the Vatican a day after a triumphant open-top bus parade through central Naples.
According to a report by The Guardian, the Pope joked about his own football allegiances, stating, "The press says I am an AS Roma fan, but you are welcome! This is what the press says. Not everything you read in the press is true." The Pope, the first to come from the US, is known to follow and take part in sport, including tennis, and has been described by those who know him as a Roma supporter.
The Guardian reports that Napoli’s chairman, Aurelio De Laurentiis, presented the Pope with a blue Napoli shirt signed by the players, bearing the No 10 and his name in Italian, "Papa Leone XIV". De Laurentiis said, "You are a No 10, so you are a great striker." The Pope replied with a chuckle and a simple "thank you".
The Napoli coach, Antonio Conte, whom De Laurentiis introduced as "deeply Catholic", knelt down and kissed the Pope’s hand, before the Pope told him he had seen him many times on TV. In a short speech, the Pontiff stressed the importance of team spirit and collaboration, and sport’s educational value, especially for young people. Winning comes "at the end of a long journey, where what matters the most is not a one-time exploit or the extraordinary performance of one champion", he said. "The championship is won by the team, and when I say ‘team’ I mean the players, the coach with the whole squad, and the club," he added.
As reported by The Guardian, the Pope ended his remarks giving his blessings to players and club officials, and offering congratulations, also on behalf of his personal cook. "She is from Naples and she says: best wishes! She would like to be here too, Mrs Rosa, [she is] a big fan." The meeting was a fitting end to Napoli’s title celebrations, which began with their 2-0 home victory over Cagliari on Friday, securing their fourth Scudetto and edging out Inter by one point in a nail-biting end to the season.
The Guardian also notes that Napoli’s player of the season, Scott McTominay, was in attendance at the meeting, as well as the team’s captain, Giovanni Di Lorenzo. The team’s triumphant open-top bus parade through central Naples on Monday was attended by thousands of fans, who celebrated the team’s title win. The meeting with the Pope was a unique and special experience for the team, and a fitting end to their title celebrations.
The article was originally published by The Guardian and can be found at: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2025/may/27/scott-mctominay-napoli-continue-title-celebrations-pope-leo-xiv-meeting-vatican.
