World Cup Corner

The Vatican is preparing to fight it out with priests in Rome…. over a game of soccer.

February 2007 marks the inaugural Clericus Cup, and the Vatican has registered to be one of the participating 16 teams. The final will take place in the Italian capital of Rome at the end of June.

“The Clericus Cup is an occasion for all those enthusiasts, and some former players — who are in seminaries today, attending university, studying to be a priest, to put themselves back in the game, dribbling, making saves and headers,” from a statement by the Italian Sports Center, organizers of the event.

The teams will be made up of trainee priests, most of whom are students at Rome’s varied pontifical universities.

Here’s something for the trivia buffs. Pope John Paul II was considered a promising goalkeeper. The story was he almost went on to play professional soccer in Poland. And no.. Lech Walesa was not the top scorer in the polish leagues.