The president of the Juan Pablo II College Chongoyape club has credited the Polish-born pope for the team’s “miracle” success – but others suspect its promotion was due to an underhand intervention by more secular powers.
Juan Pablo II College Chongoyape, which features an image of the late pontiff on the club’s crest, first came to the attention of Polish football fans last year after they sealed an unprecedented promotion to the second flight.
That time, victory against a team called the Red Devils (Diablos Rojos de Juliaca) was enough to prompt a wave of cheeky headlines in Poland announcing that the pope had vanquished the devil.
On Facebook, Juan Pablo II College’s page found itself flooded by well-wishers from Poland, with some even imploring the club to open a fan store in the country.
A year on, and Juan Pablo II College have returned to Poland’s back-page press after beating AD Comerciantes 4-3 on penalties to clinch a place in Liga 1. Amid delirious scenes, players could be seen weeping with joy and offering prayers while being mobbed by ecstatic fans.
On X, Poles too have rushed to offer their own congratulations, with one even posting a gif of a fist-pumping pope.
Though seemingly a feel-good story, news of Juan Pablo II College’s win has been tainted by controversy, with opposing fans pointing to a string of dubious refereeing decisions that took place during the match.
Compounding a sense of mounting anger is the side’s history. Founded in 2015, the club was established by Agustin Lozano, the president of the Peruvian Football Federation.
With Lozano’s wife, Orfelinda Correa, acting as the club’s president, football fans in Peru have voiced suspicions of alleged unfair practices at play.
Hitting back, Correa credited the Polish-born pope for the win: “I said it, I said that I have faith that Juan Pablo would perform the miracle for me... The score was given by God, by the one above. When you do things right, you get your reward.”
The football pope
An avid football fan, Pope John Paul II is known to have been a capable goalkeeper in his youth, with his passion for the sport never waning in later years.
As a supporter, it is his devotion to Poland’s Cracovia for which he is best known. Once granting the Krakow side a private meeting at the Vatican, his death in 2005 briefly united fans of the city’s warring clubs.
Given his associations with Cracovia, some fans of the club are now calling for a friendly match to be arranged between Juan Pablo II College Chongoyape.
