Jules Rimet's Legacy and Papal Reflections Spotlighted at World Cup

Jules Rimet, the French lawyer who founded the FIFA World Cup in 1930, began his career as a youth playing football in Paris and later created the Red Star club in 1897. He helped establish the USFSA, which led to FIFA’s creation, and championed an amateur tournament before the first World Cup took place.

During the current 23rd edition of the tournament, the Vatican highlighted football’s social value. Pope John Paul II recalled his own amateur goalkeeping and his support for Polish club MKS Cracovia, while Pope Benedict XVI described football as a global event that unites humanity. Pope Francis, calling football “the most beautiful game,” urged the 2022 Qatar World Cup participants to use the competition to promote fraternity and peace. The popes’ statements echo Rimet’s original vision of football as a unifying force across nations and classes.