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On Monday, June 10, the Economy team beat the Vatican Archives team 7-5. While the chronicles of the Premier League, LaLiga, or Series A are widely followed by soccer (football) fans, few know that even the Vatican has its own men's championship. There are 13 teams of employees in the competition, representing various dicasteries and offices of the world's smallest state.
This year, the "Santos" team, made up of players from the Vatican's economic sector, won the Vatican League Cup 2024. The champions, wearing their black and white jerseys, lifted the trophy on the lawn of the Petriana field — owned by the Church — not far from the Vatican. This is the venue for all the season's matches.
The amateur athletes were playing this final against the Vatican Archives team, who lost after a tight first half (3-3), as reported by Vatican News journalist Mario Galgano, the only faithful chronicler of this virtually unknown national tournament.
A first tournament in 1947
The first Vatican soccer tournament in modern times took place in 1947, reports the journalist. After a break of almost 20 years, the first official Vatican soccer team was founded in 1966, under the name "SS Hermes Musei Vaticani." Its members included restorers and museum guards.
Subsequently, other Vatican entities followed suit: the Gendarmerie in 1968, the Fabric of St. Peter — which manages the Basilica — in 1969, then the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See and the Library.
Today, the 13 teams also include the Post Office, technical services, the Swiss Guard, Vatican Radio and L'Osservatore Romano.
The "Supercup”
The tournament takes place under the auspices of the "Associazione Sportiva Dilettantistica Sport in Vaticano" (Sports in the Vatican Amateur Sports Association), which organizes not only this "league" but also the "Sergio Valci Cup" — named after the founder of today's Vatican soccer structure in the 1990s.
At the end of the season, the League and Cup winning teams compete in a "Supercup." Among the players taking part in this year's Vatican Championship was Archbishop Gabriele Giordano Caccia, 66, the Holy See's representative at the United Nations.
While playing with 11 people on the team is also the norm in the Vatican, Mario Galgano points out that teams have sometimes adapted to play with 5, 8, or 9 players, depending on the needs of the era. Vatican City also has its own national soccer team, made up of Swiss Guards, papal advisors, and museum guards.
As the Vatican is not a member of either the Fédération Internationale de Football (FIFA) or the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the team only plays friendly matches.
