Surprise appointment at San Lorenzo
Argentinian football team San Lorenzo received an unexpected boost to their Primera Division title fight this week with the surprise announcement that Pope Francis will take over as chairman next season.

The team, which trails rivals Boca Juniors by just three points, has been the Pope’s favourite since he was Archbishop of Buenos Aires, as witnessed by his club ID card (right).

At a press conference on 1 April a Vatican spokesman said that the Holy See had a history of involvement in sport, citing the Pope’s charity match, “United for Peace”, last year. A Vatican spokesman, Fr Pesce D’Aprile, added it was unlikely Pope Francis would attend matches in his new capacity. Because of a promise he made to the Virgin of Carmen in 1990 to not watch TV, he does not watch broadcast games. “A Swiss guard tells him where San Lorenzo is in the table,” he said.