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Get you up to speed: Pope Leo faces stiff competition from Bad Bunny for attention in Spain | News World
Pope Leo XIV arrived in Madrid today for a week-long visit, during which he will engage with Spanish royals and government officials. The Pope’s agenda commenced with a welcome ceremony at the Royal Palace, attended by King Felipe and Queen Letizia.
Pope Leo XIV’s itinerary includes significant engagements in Madrid, Barcelona, and the Canary Islands over a week, featuring meetings with the Spanish monarchy and government officials. His visit aligns with a broader context of increasing secularisation in Spain, where over half of the population identifies as Catholic, but most are non-practicing.
Pope Leo XIV arrived in Spain for a week-long visit, with plans for meetings including one with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Monday following a welcome ceremony at the Royal Palace. Amidst this, he expressed hope that his presence might inspire young people, acknowledging the competition from the ongoing concerts of Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny in Madrid.
What remains unclear — The specific nature of the scandals involving Spain’s political and spiritual leadership has not been detailed.
Pope Leo faces competition from Bad Bunny during Spain visit

Pope Leo arrived today in Madrid for a week-long tour of Spain (Picture: Carlos Alvarez/Getty Images)
Pope Leo has admitted he is facing some competition as he arrived in Spain for a week long visit.
The 70-year-old pontiff is in Madrid at the same time Puerto Rican rapper Bad Bunny stages a string of concerts in the Spanish capital.
Leo acknowledged that faced with the choice, young Spaniards would likely choose to see the six-time Grammy award winner over him.
However he still hoped his visit would ‘awaken’ young adults, who he said were sensing a lack of meaning in their lives.
Bad Bunny will continue a series of ten shows in Madrid this evening, where he is due to perform at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano until June 15, before coming to London at the end of the month.
The Pope’s arrival comes as both Spain’s political and spiritual leadership have been embroiled in scandals.
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The Pope with King Felipe of Spain (centre) at Madrid’s Royal Palace (Picture: Europa Press/MEGA)
Following a welcome ceremony at the Royal Palace in Madrid with King Felipe and Queen Letizia today, the Pope will meet prime minister Pedro Sanchez on Monday.
He will then travel to Barcelona on Tuesday, where he will lead a prayer vigil at the city’s Lluís Companys stadium.
His visit will conclude in the Canary Islands on Wednesday and Thursday, during which he will meet religious leaders in Gran Canaria and migrants at Las Raíces centre in Tenerife.
More than half of Spaniards identify as Catholic, although most define as non-practicing.
However the nation is united by a love of football.

Bad Bunny is doing two weeks of concerts at Madrid’s Riyadh Air Metropolitano stadium (Picture: EPA/Shutterstock)
Asked about the upcoming World Cup, Pope Leo said his support would be behind his home country and co-hosts, the US.
But tasked with choosing between Real Madrid and Barcelona, the former a symbol of Spanish unionism, the latter Catalan nationalism, he separated his views from the position traditionally taken by the pontiff.
‘That’s easy’, he said.
‘The pope is for all teams, but Prevost is Real Madrid’, referring to his surname by birth.
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E3 leaders support ceasefire talks between Ukraine and Russia
Leaders of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom have backed President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s call for direct ceasefire talks between Ukraine and Russia.
The unified stance of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom in advocating direct ceasefire talks with Russia demonstrates a significant commitment to diplomatic engagement amid ongoing conflict.
“We support the proposal for a direct dialogue between Ukraine and Russia, with active US and European participation, to bring about a ceasefire and support further negotiations.”
UK, France and Germany back direct talks with Russia ‘with active US and European participation’

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The leaders of France, Germany and the United Kingdom backed Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in calling for direct ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine, according to a joint statement issued following defence talks in London on Sunday.
Zelenskyy met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz at 10 Downing Street for talks as Russia’s war has stretched into its fifth year.
The leaders “supported the proposal for a direct dialogue between Ukraine and Russia, with active US and European participation, to bring about a ceasefire and support further negotiations”, they said.
“The current line of contact should be the starting point for negotiations,” it said, adding that “international borders must not be changed by force.”
Zelenskyy had proposed a face-to-face meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in an open letter on Thursday.
Putin ruled out the move, saying he saw “no point” in meeting Zelensky until a possible peace deal had been agreed.
The leaders also underlined the urgent need to scale up the production of interceptors and co-develop anti-ballistic missile and deep strike capabilities.”
They condemned Russia’s “large-scale missile and drone attacks — including the repeated use of the Oreshnik missiles — on Ukrainian cities with a tragic toll on civilians.”
Kyiv has been asking its Western allies for more ammunition deliveries for its air defences as Ukraine endures daily Russian strikes. Zelenskyy is seeking ways for the allies to further pressure Russia to end the fighting.
The UK, France and Germany, the so-called E3 group of European nations, have been prominent backers of Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. The UK and France lead the “coalition of the willing” initiative to provide security guarantees for Ukraine as part of a peace process.
Additional sources • AP, AFP
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