On Thursday, white smoke arose from the Sistine Chapel’s chimney in Vatican City, confirming the Roman Catholic Church had elected a new pope.
Soon after, Robert Prevost emerged on the central balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, taking the name Pope Leo XIV. The 69-year-old Chicago native is the first American pope.
A pope seems like he would have no connections to the sports world, but that’s not the case with Prevost. With that in mind, here are three:
He’s a fan of a well-known baseball team
Prevost grew up on the South Side of Chicago, home to the Chicago White Sox. However, he’s a fan of their cross-town rival, the Chicago Cubs, via ABC News’ Terry Moran.
“And another thing that you know, because he’s a Cubs fan, is he is well-acquainted with suffering in the sporting world,” Moran, a fellow Chicagoan, said during ABC’s broadcast.
Of course, the Cubs broke their 108-year World Series curse during the 2016 season, beating the Cleveland Guardians in seven games.
Since then, Chicago hasn’t returned to the Fall Classic, but it may be a championship contender this season. The Cubs are 22-16 and first in the National League Central. Perhaps the Cubs won’t make Prevost suffer more if they stay on an upward trajectory.
His election highlights the Bears’ ineptitude
On his X account on Thursday, Dan Treacy of The Sporting News tweeted, “Chicago produced a pope before a [4,000-passing-yard] quarterback.”