San Lorenzo fan Pope Francis becomes Boca Juniors member

Buenos Aires (AFP) – Pope Francis, an avid supporter of Argentine outfit San Lorenzo, has committed a cardinal sin by becoming a member of a rival club, although it’s for a good cause.

Despite his passionate support for San Lorenzo, the Pontiff has accepted club membership from Buenos Aires giants Boca Juniors, with a personalized jersey set to follow.

“I’m proud to know that Pope Francis already has his Boca membership card and will receive the jersey with his signature,” said Boca president Jorge Ameal on Twitter.

Ameal posted pictures of the moment Francis received his membership card at the Vatican, as well as the presentation of a Boca jersey in Buenos Aires with his name and the number one on the back that will be given to the Pontiff.

The presentation was part of an educational partnership between Boca and the “Scholas Occurentes” network of education centers supported by the Vatican.

It was set up in Buenos Aires by Francis when he was the Roman Catholic archbishop in the Argentine capital. It is now present in 190 countries and brings together 400,000 education centers patronized by the Vatican.

Francis, who turns 84 on Thursday, was born in Buenos Aires, where a person can change anything except their football team.

Boca’s main rivals are River Plate while San Lorenzo’s enemies are Huracan but it is still unheard of for a person to pin their colors to two teams from the same city.