Holy Soccer

Maybe it's because of the suspension of soccer games that has taken place in Italy since the riots after the Catania against Palermo match. Or perhaps because the priests of the Vatican City are sick of watching games manipulated by the corrupt Italian Footbal Federation. Whichever reason, the fact is that the Vatican City is about to introduce its own soccer league, named the Clericus Cup.
In this league, in which 16 teams representing different Catholic institutions will participate, only priests will play. Other supporting staff, such as coaches, will be composed exclusively by ecclesiastical members. The rules will be pretty much the same that are in force in other soccer leagues (by this, I mean all but the MLS). The main differences will be the length of a match (in this league, a game will consist of two 30 minutes periods) and the use of a "blue card", which will mean a suspension of 5 minutes.
All of the games will be played in the La Petriana stadium in Rome; however, the final match to be played in June will be disputed in the Marmi Stadium... of course, don't expect it to be on a Sunday, because there will be no Sunday matches in the Clericus Cup.
According to the organizer, Centro Sportivo Italiano (Italian Sport Centre, CSI), the idea of this league is to demonstrate the importance of sport in a Catholic education.
How do you like this project? In my point of view, it's really weird. But hey, that's true... why shouldn't priests enjoy the benefits of doing some sport as well? Who says that religion and sports don't match??
If you're curious to see, don't forget to tune in to the opening match, Gregoriana vs Mater Ecclesiae, on February 24!

Click here to visit CSI's official page (in Italian), with information about the Clericus Cup.