Pope Francis meeting helped Arsenal set up transfer deal with Man United..
Legendary former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger found himself having to negotiate a deal for Danny Welbeck while visiting the Vatican and meeting the late Pope Francis..
Arsene Wenger’s meeting with the late Pope Francis once helped the Arsenal manager sign Danny Welbeck from Manchester United.
The Pope, who was the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, died on Easter Monday morning at the age of 88. He was the head of the Catholic Church for 12 years between March 2013 and his death on April 21, 2025.
The Argentine was a revolutionary pontiff, reshaping the Vatican with his commitment to social justice and ideas on LGTBQ+ rights. And, as a well-known football fan, his influence was so widespread that he even had an impact on one of the Gunners’ transfers during Wenger’s tenure.
The legendary Gunners boss in September 2014 spent transfer deadline day in Rome, ahead of a long-standing appointment to meet the Pope. Wenger took part in a charity football game in the Italian capital on the busiest day for football transfers, while Arsenal were deep into negotiations with United to bring Welbeck to the Emirates Stadium.
In fact, the Frenchman found himself negotiating with former chief executive Ivan Gazidis and Welbeck’s agent while in the queue to have a photo and a private audience with the Pope, abruptly hanging up once he had reached the front.
Wenger said at the time: “Meeting the Pope was an experience I did not want to miss. I am a Catholic, so it was an experience, and one I accepted a long time ago. On top of that it was a game for peace and multi-religion understanding.
“I thought today where we are a bit in front of an international religious war [in Gaza], it was a very important game. He is a great person. He shows humility and is available to meet for everybody, has a word with everybody.
“He is also a football fan. He is a supporter of San Lorenzo in Argentina. You cannot be born in Argentina and not be a football fan. He spoke with many Argentinians, so I wanted to be discreet and say, ‘it was nice to meet you and bye-bye’.”
Arsene Wenger with Danny Welbeck
Arsene Wenger was able to sign Danny Welbeck on transfer deadline day (Image: Arsenal FC via Getty Images)
Yet, Wenger, who now works as FIFA’s Chief of Global Football Development, was able to get the Welbeck deal over the line, beating rivals Tottenham to the signing with a fee of £16million. That was despite United throwing a spanner in the works by demanding a permanent transfer rather than the originally intended loan deal with an option to buy.
The legendary Gunners boss admitted the meeting actually boosted his chances of signing the English striker because of how early he woke up, meaning he was working hard on negotiating while making the trip.
He explained: “In 2014 you can always be in touch with everybody even when you travel. The advantage of that day was I had to get up at 6 o’clock in the morning for my flight and I was available the whole day.”
Welbeck was a fan favourite in north London in his five seasons with the club, despite having his career hampered by injuries. He managed to score 32 goals in 126 appearances for the Gunners, winning two FA Cups and reaching both the EFL Cup and Europa League finals.
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