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. According to his brother, John, the new pontiff is indeed a fan of the South Siders, contradicting an earlier report.

“He was always a Sox fan,” John told Chicago’s WGN. “He was never, ever a Cubs fan. So I don’t know where that came from.”

The White Sox faithful have been suffering as the team continues to produce miserable results on the diamond. The White Sox haven’t seen postseason action since the 2021 season and are unlikely to break that trend in 2025. Of course, the 2024 White Sox were historically bad, losing an MLB-record 121 games. Perhaps having a high-profile fan at the Vatican can help the franchise turn things around.

For their part, the White Sox have claimed him.

“Family always knows best, and it sounds like Pope Leo XIV’s lifelong fandom follows a little closer to 35th and Shields,” the Sox said in a statement, referring to Rate Field, via the Chicago Tribune. “Some things are bigger than baseball, and in this case we’re glad to have a White Sox fan represented at the Vatican. A pinstripe White Sox jersey with his name on it and a hat already are on the way to Rome, and of course, the Pontiff always is welcome at the ballpark.”

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.”