Pope Francis receives the Croatian soccer team

On the morning of June 5, Pope Francis received in audience the players of the Croatian national soccer team, whom he encouraged to cultivate “spiritual and human qualities” to set a good example for fans.

At the beginning of the match, the Holy Father congratulated the players for achieving third place in the last world championship.

For Pope Francis, this event confirmed that football “is a global phenomenon capable of involving a large number of people, of arousing emotions and collective feelings.”

“I can attest to this, coming from a country where all this is fully experienced,” he said, referring to the great enthusiasm there is for this sport in Argentina, his country of origin that won first place in the last Soccer World Cup.

The Holy Father highlighted the importance of teamwork, “a metaphor for social life, in the different environments in which we live and work together with others.”

As the Pontiff expressed, “if individualism prevails, then the entire dynamic is ruined and the objective is not achieved.”

In addition, he highlighted other values ​​of football such as “the sense of honor, friendship between you and brotherhood, loyalty and self-control.”

“Never forget that fans, especially young people, reflect on you: your role goes beyond the sporting sphere and becomes a model of life and success,” he warned.

Therefore, he encouraged them to cultivate “spiritual and human qualities” so that they can set a good example.

“Dear friends, I thank you for your visit and I wish you much success in your sporting and social activities. “I bless you and ask you to pray for me,” Pope Francis said finally.