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After Pope Leo XIV was announced as the leader of the Catholics on May 8, speculations began on his favorite baseball team. While the Chicago Cubs initially claimed to be Pope's favorite team, his brother set the record straight, stating his favorite team was the Chicago White Sox. This left many Cubs fans enraged and questioning the claim.
To settle the feud, a fan came up with a brilliant idea. A viral post by @ChiSoxFanMike on X (formerly Twitter) suggested that he heard a great idea in his comment, where one of the users said to conduct a series in Rome between the Cubs and the White Sox.
“Someone in my replies said the White Sox and Cubs should play a series in Rome to honor the Pope and that is the best idea I’ve ever seen,” Mike wrote.
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The internet has embraced the idea with equal parts satire and seriousness.
“AT THE COLOSSEUM!!! Losing team dies,” one user wrote.
Another chimed in:
“Shouldn’t it be the Vatican?”
Meanwhile, one traditionalist threw in a curveball:
“White Sox and Tigers. Cubs don't have to insert themselves into everything. Let the Southside shine.”
That didn’t go unchecked:
“Cubs would destroy the Sox lmao,” one user replied.
Naturally, not everyone was on board with papal baseball diplomacy. One fan added:
“No, you already let the Roman Catholics and Jesuits ruin my country, don’t let them ruin my American sport.”
Another Sox supporter summed it up:
“White Sox would terrorize lil bro.”
Pope Leo XIV's White Sox fan evidence on display
Pope Leo XIV was born Robert Prevost in Chicago’s southwestern suburbs. Since he is from Chicago, he either had allegiance towards the Cubs or the White Sox. As it turns out, it's the latter and there's new supporting evidence to back the claim.
Earlier this week, while moving through Vatican City, the newly ordained pontiff joined in on a “White Sox” chant. A 15-second clip is doing the rounds on social media in which a crowd of overseas fans starts chanting “White Sox! White Sox!”
It got the attention of Pope Leo XIV, who waved back to the crowd and also chanted the club's name.
It must have hurt the Cubs, who thought Pope Leo XIV was one of their own.
