Pope Leo XIV met Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny at Madrid’s Bernabéu on June 8 during a weeklong Spain tour, the Vatican confirmed on June 9—while declining to release photos. The encounter comes amid political turbulence for the pope, including clashes with Do
Madrid’s Bernabéu turned into a private crossroads on June 8 when Pope Leo XIV briefly met Puerto Rican singer Bad Bunny during a tour of Spain. The Vatican confirmed the encounter on June 9, saying it did not expect to release any photos of the meeting.
The Vatican statement said the pope met the reggaeton star with his family and “other people.” Bad Bunny, whose given name is Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio, was offered a short greeting before Pope Leo left the stadium.
The meeting also landed under a larger spotlight for the pope’s public standing in the U.S. Leo XIV—described as the first pope from America—was approaching his one-year tenure mark. drawing high marks from American Catholics even as his papacy has brushed up against Donald Trump. Earlier this year, Trump criticized the pope after Leo had criticized the Iran war.
That clash with Trump is part of what makes the Bad Bunny encounter feel politically loaded even though it appears to have been brief. The singer has been outspoken against Trump’s hardline anti-immigration policies. Bad Bunny also supported former Vice President Kamala Harris, a Democrat, during the 2024 presidential race.
Leo’s timing in Spain comes with warnings of global instability as well. During his week-long visit, he warned that escalating conflicts have pushed the world into “profound crisis.”
The cultural connection to the U.S. also ran through Bad Bunny’s recent global visibility. In February. he headlined the Super Bowl halftime show. bringing Spanish-language lyrics and reggaeton rhythms to the annual American football spectacle. Trump reacted angrily to the performance, calling it “absolutely terrible” and “an affront to the Greatness of America.”.
The Vatican’s decision not to release photos kept the moment tightly controlled. even as the names behind it—Pope Leo XIV and Bad Bunny—both carry sharp political and cultural associations back in the United States. For American Catholics watching the pope’s first year. and for voters tracking the culture-war fallout of Trump-era messaging. the meeting underscored how quickly religion. celebrity. and politics can intersect—sometimes in a single. fleeting greeting at a stadium.
Pope Leo XIV Bad Bunny Benito Antonio Martinez Ocasio Bernabéu Madrid Vatican Donald Trump Kamala Harris Super Bowl halftime show immigration Iran war