Pope Francis’ passion for football It is public and notorious. There are many statements from the highest leader of the Catholic Church on the subject of sports. In a long interview with the newspaper “TG1” of the Italian broadcaster Rai, which was broadcast on Wednesday evening (1), the Pope was of course asked about this topic, among several other topics.
At a certain point in the chat, the interviewer asks Francisco, who is Argentinian, which of the two idols of Latin American and world football he prefers: Diego Maradona or Lionel Messi, who has just won his 8th Ballon d’Or.
The Holy Father’s answer was surprised. For Pope Francis, the best football player of all time is not one of his Argentinian compatriots, but the Brazilian Edson Arantes do NascimentoPele.
“I would say a third person: Pelé.”said the Pope.
“These are the three I followed. Maradona as a player was great. But as a man he failed. Poor guy, he slipped. He came to meet me here in the first year of his pontificate. Then, poor guy, he had this ending. It’s strange that many athletes end up badly. Messi is absolutely right. He’s a gentleman. But for me, among these three, Pelé is the great gentleman. A man with a heart. I spoke to Pelé, I met him once “On the plane when I was in Buenos Aires. A man of great humanity. The three are big, each with their own peculiarity. Messi is strong at this moment. And Pelé was strong,” he continued.