Pope Leo XVI given Sunderland shirt and offers prayer before Europa League debut win over AZ Alkmaar | OneFootball

Sunderland parish priest and club chaplain Father Marc Lyden-Smith presented Pope Leo XVI with a customised Sunderland AFC shirt in Rome just hours before the Black Cats’ 1-0 Europa League debut win over AZ Alkmaar.

According to Sunderland Echo, Father Marc was at the Vatican on 16 September with parishioners on a pilgrimage, carrying a club-provided home shirt printed 'Pope Leo' and the number 14.

He passed the shirt and a copy of his book, Faith and Football, to Bishop Seamus Cunningham, who handed them to the Pope. Father Marc said the Pope praised sport’s ability to bring people together and that he would pray for Sunderland as they begin their European adventure. Video shows the pontiff smiling as he unfurled the shirt, revealed the name and number, then posed for a photograph.

The Wearside group later found a bar near their hotel to watch the match. After a tight contest in which the visitors missed several good chances, Father Marc said he was sure the Pope’s prayer helped and that it would not have done any harm.

Pope Leo became head of the Catholic Church in May 2025 after Pope Francis died, becoming the first pope from the USA. Father Marc said he developed a love of ‘soccer’ while working in Peru.

It was not his first papal gift. In 2013 he gave a Sunderland shirt to Pope Francis, an Argentinian fan of San Lorenzo, and after the blessing Sunderland beat Newcastle United the next day.

Source: Sunderland Echo

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