Pope Francis blesses UEFA officials ahead of Euro 2020

Advertisement

Advertise with us

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis met with UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin and other soccer officials on Thursday to offer his blessings before the European Championship kicks off in Rome.

Read this article for free:


or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Subscribe and receive a limited-edition Free Press branded hat or tote.

Digital Subscription

One year of digital access for only $205*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles

*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

To continue reading, please subscribe:

Add Free Press access to your Brandon Sun subscription for only an additional

$1 for the first 4 weeks*

  • Enjoy unlimited reading on winnipegfreepress.com
  • Read the E-Edition, our digital replica newspaper
  • Access News Break, our award-winning app
  • Play interactive puzzles
Start now

*Your next Brandon Sun subscription payment will increase by $1.00 and you will be charged $17.95 plus GST for four weeks. After four weeks, your payment will increase to $24.95 plus GST every four weeks.

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 10/06/2021 (1942 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis met with UEFA president Aleksander Čeferin and other soccer officials on Thursday to offer his blessings before the European Championship kicks off in Rome.

Euro 2020, which was postponed by a year because of the coronavirus pandemic, starts Friday with Italy playing Turkey at the Stadio Olimpico.

The Argentine-born Francis is an avid soccer fan and a noted supporter of Buenos Aires team San Lorenzo.

A man walks in front of Rome's Olympic stadium, Wednesday, June 9, 2021. The Euro 2020 gets underway on Friday June 11 and is being played in 11 host cities across 11 countries. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
A man walks in front of Rome's Olympic stadium, Wednesday, June 9, 2021. The Euro 2020 gets underway on Friday June 11 and is being played in 11 host cities across 11 countries. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

Italian soccer federation president Gabriele Gravina also took part in the meeting inside the Apostolic Palace at the Vatican.

___

More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/Soccer and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Report Error Submit a Tip

More Stories

Brandonmeat packer thriving on its own

Abiola Odutola 3 minute read Preview

Brandonmeat packer thriving on its own

Abiola Odutola 3 minute read Yesterday at 2:01 AM CDT

BRANDON — Canada Packers has strengthened its business and laid the foundation for future growth during its first year as an independent company, its president says.

The Brandon-based pork producer, separated from Maple Leaf Foods in October 2025, established its own leadership, strategy, systems, culture and identity while continuing operations across its hog production farms and regional hog barns in southern and eastern Manitoba.

The company’s first year was focused on building a successful standalone business while continuing to serve customers, communities and shareholders, president Dennis Organ said.

“Market conditions over the past year have been more challenging than we anticipated when we became a separate entity,” he said in an email. “Despite that, we continued to execute against our priorities, including increasing processing volumes, maintaining disciplined operations and strengthening the business.”

Read
Yesterday at 2:01 AM CDT

Bombers get ‘whooped’ in Montreal

Taylor Allen 5 minute read Preview

Bombers get ‘whooped’ in Montreal

Taylor Allen 5 minute read Yesterday at 11:32 PM CDT

MONTREAL — It’s hard to fathom that the Winnipeg Blue Bombers smacked these Montreal Alouettes five weeks ago.

The team that pulled off that 44-28 upset at Princess Auto Stadium was nowhere to be found in La Belle Province on Saturday night.

You can, however, now find them in the basement of the West Division at 7-8 after getting completely outmatched and outclassed by the Als in a 37-10 beatdown.

“This was bad,” left tackle Stanley Bryant told the Free Press postgame. “They basically had their way all around. They whooped our ass.”

Read
Yesterday at 11:32 PM CDT

’Disgusting’ posters being investigated by police

Morgan Modjeski 4 minute read Yesterday at 2:22 PM CDT

The Winnipeg Police Service major crimes unit is investigating what some have labelled offensive and hateful posters on full-display at a Winnipeg home.

One of the people irked by the display is Gracie Garrett. She’s has lived on Ashburn Street in Winnipeg’s Minto neighbourhood for almost ten years. She’s never felt unsafe in the neighbourhood before, but now, a set of posters plastered on a nearby house are making her feel uneasy.

The five signs, posted facing the street prominently on a front window, contain a slur, refer to Nazis as “heroes” and call Muslims, Christians and other groups “evil.”

Learning of the signs Friday, Garrett said she’ll be reporting the posters to police, as she worries they incite and promote violence.

Gordon Bell rings in a century

Maggie Macintosh 13 minute read Preview

Gordon Bell rings in a century

Maggie Macintosh 13 minute read Friday, Oct. 2, 2026

Mischka Valencia had gotten used to the hum of heavy machinery at Gordon Bell High School.

“Ever since I’ve been here, it’s all been under construction,” the Grade 12 student said, standing on the sidelines of the brightly painted revamped outdoor basketball court. “I had no idea this was a court.”

The Filipina teenager landed in Winnipeg several months after the inner-city campus had transformed into a construction site.

It was the fall of 2023 and Mischka’s priorities were fitting in, befriending classmates and learning a third language via first-period French.

Read
Friday, Oct. 2, 2026

Volunteer pop-up library axed from Manitoba Youth Centre

Matthew Frank 4 minute read Preview

Volunteer pop-up library axed from Manitoba Youth Centre

Matthew Frank 4 minute read Updated: Yesterday at 11:25 AM CDT

Manitoba Corrections has cancelled a pop-up library program at the Manitoba Youth Centre, leaving inmates without librarian services and fewer options to borrow certain books.

The Prison Libraries Committee, part of the non-profit Manitoba Library Association, operated and funded the volunteer program since 2024 before it was shut down by the province last month. The group previously partnered with the province to offer the service because the facility has no dedicated library of its own.

“It is concerning that community members who are incarcerated, especially youth, are losing out on meaningful programming, access to information and rehabilitation efforts, which are offered at no cost to (Manitoba) Corrections. We urge Manitoba Justice to promote more library services and programming, not less,” said a Sept. 24 letter from the non-profit addressed to the justice minister.

Ashley Huot, chair of the Prison Libraries Committee, said she was puzzled when she received an email last month from Manitoba Corrections stating that the pop-up library was no longer needed.

Read
Updated: Yesterday at 11:25 AM CDT

Living the dream

Ken Wiebe 7 minute read Preview

Living the dream

Ken Wiebe 7 minute read Yesterday at 4:48 PM CDT

DETROIT – As Tyrel Bauer took a left turn out of the tunnel from the Winnipeg Jets dressing room and into the stands, he was met with a hearty round of applause from the 25 friends and family members who had made the trek from various points around North America.

Bauer had just realized a childhood dream and the significance of the moment was not lost on some of his biggest supporters.

“It was a special walk, for sure. A special walk,” Bauer said on Saturday afternoon before the Jets departed for a two-game road trip that begins on Sunday in Detroit against the Red Wings. “Those people who came – and many more that weren’t there and were cheering on from afar – they’ve always been there.

“I wanted that for my family, maybe even more than I wanted it for me. They’ve been through thick and thin. I’ve stressed mom out quite a bit over the years doing my job. That meant a lot for them and I’m really happy they could be there for it.”

Read
Yesterday at 4:48 PM CDT