Villanova Leans Into Pope Leo Connection as Basketball Teams Head to Rome

Villanova University is strengthening its relationship with the Vatican following the election of its alumnus, Pope Leo XIV, a connection now extending into the school's basketball program.

The men's and women's basketball teams will open their season in Rome against Notre Dame, in a matchup organizers are calling the Eternal City Tip-Off, held just a few miles from the Vatican. The event follows a Villanova-hosted sustainability conference in Rome, during which a cardinal received the first Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal.

Pope Leo, who earned a mathematics degree from Villanova in 1977 and belongs to the Augustinian order that founded the school, is scheduled to hold a private audience for the traveling teams and fans at the Vatican, health permitting after his recent cancer diagnosis and surgery. Philadelphia's archbishop is also set to celebrate a private Mass for the group at St. Peter's Basilica.

University officials say Leo's papacy has raised the school's profile, with applications rising more than 10% during the first admissions cycle after his election. Campus leaders have also reported increased interest in Catholicism, including a larger-than-usual number of people preparing to join the church this year.

Villanova's president, a fellow Augustinian who studied alongside Leo, described widespread pride on campus in the pope's leadership and said the university is eager to support him in any way it can.

Students and faculty described personal connections to the pope, including stories of serving at Masses he once led as a cardinal and reflecting on his time walking the same campus they now attend.