Pope Leo XIV likes basketball and has a favorite team: they're going to need his divine 'help'

With the arrival of Robert Prevost as the first US-born Pope as successor to Pope Francis, a self-confessed soccer fan and especially of San Lorenzo de Almagro of Argentina, investigations began into the sports that Leo XIV likes and there have been several surprises.

He graduated in Mathematics from Villanova University and this is a good starting point to analyze if he likes sports and the teams he follows, in addition to playing tennis.

In reviewing his social media background, it was found that he likes basketball and s his alma mater. In 2016, he retweeted a message to highlight the Wildcats' title win over North Carolina in the March Madness final.

"With a buzzer-beating victory over UNC, Augustinian-led Villanova becomes the first Catholic NCAA champion since the Cats' first title in 1985," reads the message reposted by Prevost

The Villanova basketball program is going through a tough time, having not participated in the NCAA tournament since the 2021-2022 season. After the poor results of the 2024-2025 season, coach Kyle Neptune was replaced by Kevin Willard, to begin a restructuring that will now have the divine protection of Pope Leo XIV, which is much needed.

The Knicks and the other teams of Pope Leo XIV

Pope Leo XIV's love of basketball extends to the NBA and there are reports that he is a fan of the New York Knicks, who are one game away from eliminating the Boston Celtics and keeping alive the dream of ending their title drought, much to the delight of Robert Prevost, with some former Villanova players on their roster.

In an interview with The Athletic, Rev. Robert P. Hagan, senior associate athletic director and chaplain for the Villanova University football and men's basketball teams, revealed that he has kept in touch with Robert Prevost in recent years and has been keeping an eye on the Wildcats and the Knicks.

"We've had a lot of fun watching the Knicks because Jalen (Brunson) and Josh (Hart) and Donte (DiVincenzo) were there and now Mikal (Bridges) is there," Hagan revealed in the interview with The Athletic and added: "I think Pope Leo will continue to watch over the Nova Knicks. I think he will continue to watch over the Wildcats, and I think he will be very proud not only of who they are, but of the way they play with a certain spirit and generosity."

After learning that a Villanova graduate was the new Pope, Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau took it in stride as he has several former Wildcats players: "Now they can be forgiven for their sins."

Being born in Chicago, the two Major League Baseball teams wanted to claim Pope Leo XIV's sympathy, but his brother John Prevost denied that he was a Cubs fan, and there is a video in which the then Father Bob appears while ing the White Sox in the 2005 World Series.

"He never, ever was a Cubs fan," John Prevost revealed in an interview with Chicago's WGN9

There is also information about the new Pope's love of soccer, as he is a fan of Roma in Serie A, but after his long stay in Peru, he became a fan of Alianza de Lima, and as he was based in Chiclayo, he was also able to follow Juan Aurich, a team that is now in the third division.