New Pope Honored By White Sox With A Mural In Their Stadium

Many around the world were shocked when an American was chosen to be the next Catholic Pope a couple of weeks back. But even more shocking to sports fans and residents of the city of Chicago was finding out that Pope Leo XIV was actually a fan of the hometown White Sox.

Pope Leo XIV Revealed To Be A White Sox Fan

Now, a mural and dedication has been unveiled at Rate Field, just above the section that Leo sat in during the now famous clip of him at the 2005 World Series.

Deep dives into Pope Lep XIV’s history began immediately after he was chosen back on May 9th. It was revealed that he was from Chicago, attended the University of Villanova, and was even a fan of his hometown White Sox.

Internet sleuths and detectives decided to do some digging. What they eventually found was both pictures and video of Robert Francis Prevost (as he was known at the time) sitting in the stands for one of the biggest moments in the history of the White Sox’ organization.

After being one of the most unsuccessful franchises in MLB history, the South Siders from Chicago finally got their time in the sun in 2005. The White Sox advanced all the way to the World Series that year, and swept the Houston Astros in four games in order to win their franchise’s first title since 1917. And for at least the first game of that series, Prevost was watching from the stands.

If you were curious where “Da Pope” sat during Game 1 of the 2005 World Series, well, you got an answer Monday afternoon.

The White Sox unveiled a mural just outside Section 140, where Pope Leo XIV watched Bobby Jenks close out the Astros. pic.twitter.com/s5NAv9EAwv

— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) May 20, 2025

During FOX’s broadcast of Game 1, the network panned to the hometown crowd as it usually did during big moments. They did so during the top of the 9th inning in Game 1, as fans around the ballpark hoped for one final out in order to secure a 5-3 victory. One of them was Prevost, who was sitting in section 140, seemingly next to a man who was holding a small child.

The clip of the new Pope immediately went viral.

New Mural Dedication Posted Inside Rate Field

The White Sox took it to the next level. On Tuesday, it was revealed that the team had put up a mural near where he sat on that cold October night 20 years ago. The main part of the painting shows him in his current status as the Pope, with an inset of the clip of him on the FOX broadcast in the upper right-hand corner. There is a small excerpt included, which confirms his fandom and gives a bit of background to the story.

It is a nice touch by the White Sox organization, and may be one of the few positives to come out of the current MLB season. They were projected to be one of the worst teams before the start of 2025, and they’ve mostly lived up to that notion. Nearly 50 games into the season, they have posted a record of 14-34, the second-fewest wins of any team thus far.

The White Sox are celebrating their 125th anniversary this year, a celebration that the mural is certainly a part of.