Few people carry the status of the Pope, head of the Catholic Church and one of the most influential religious figures in the world.
With such status and religious trappings comes a presumption of an austere, creature comfort-averse lifestyle, and so it’s been refreshing to see Pope Leo XIV, the first American to hope the Papacy, cut loose with his preferences.
For one, he’s a noted sports fan, with the Chicago native being a fan of both the Bears and the White Sox.
For two, he loves pizza. Considering the Vatican is enclosed by Italy, you’d think there would be shortage of nearby pizzerias standing by to dish a pie to the Pope, but it seems the home comforts are winning out.
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Pope Leo, formerly known Cardinal Robert Prevost, was gifted a taste of home during his procession through Saint Peter’s Square, Vatican City, on 30 July 2025.
The 69-year-old was filmed making his way through a large crowd in a vehicle, but stopped at the sight of an Aurelio’s Pizza logo.
Aurelio’s is an Illinois-based pizza chain, and it’s Chicago’s oldest franchised pizza chain with franchising beginning from 1974.
The gift was brought over by 22-year-old Madeline Daley from Cincinnati, who spoke to NBC about her brush with the Pope.
“When Pope Leo came around, he kept grabbing babies to bless them, but as soon as he saw the pizza, he had babies in his hand, but he’s still saying, like, ‘Get me that pizza, I want that pizza,’” she said.
She continued; “And seeing the logo made him light up, and his smile was from ear to ear and he was extremely excited about it.”
John Prevost, the Pope’s brother, reportedly confirmed that the six-inch Aurelio’s pepperoni pizza was promptly wolfed down by the pontiff.
“Pope Leo has been a lifetime Aurelio’s fan and going to Aurelio’s Pizza in Homewood, Ill., since the 1960s,”Joe Aurelio, CEO of Aurelio’s Pizza, told NBC News.
“So it’s been part of his life and for him to recognize [the pizza] and actually stop there in the audience was amazing.”
In a separate statement, Aurelio added: “It's great to see. The Pope is one of us, he knows where he came from, and we've already received so many blessings from his previous love and visits at Aurelio's so this is just another blessing to have him acknowledge our pizza at St. Peter's Square. We'd love to have him in again next time he is back home, and if anyone knows the people who made the sign and gave him the Aurelio's Pizza box, please message us on Instagram so we can personally thank them.”
Rachael Davis