Which Nike Sneaker is Pope Leo Wearing?

For the first time ever, the Pope has been spotted wearing Nike shoes. Today, the Vatican shared new imagery of Pope Leo XIV, dressed in standard vestments, sporting an innocuous pair of white Nike sneakers. We spent hours digging, and we found them.

As the leader of the Catholic church, the Pope has special access to plenty of immaculate gear. In addition to the standard priestly vestments, the Pope rides in the custom-made Popemobile (not the actual name, the Vatican does not like it), wears custom jewelry exclusive to the Pope, and possibly, special Nike shoes. This afternoon, the Vatican released a trailer for Leone a Roma, an upcoming documentary about Pope Leo XIV’s first year in office. In the clip, there is a brief shot of Leo wearing a crisp white pair of Nike shoes, identified by the black Swoosh adorning either side of the silhouette.

Leo was elected a year ago today, and is the first-ever American pope. Born Robert Prevost, Leo is a native of Chicago and a well-documented Chicago sports fan. His team of choice is the White Sox, and given his age in the 1990s (mid-30s), there is a non-zero chance Leo was rooting for Michael Jordan and the Bulls during their championship years. Since his papacy began, the Bulls G-league team released a special limited-edition bobblehead of Pope Leo in red & white vestments with the Chicago flag displayed behind him. However, there has never been any affiliation between Leo and sneakers until now.

The photo of Pope Leo wearing Nike shoes is everywhere right now, but we can’t seem to agree on exactly what shoe he is wearing. Searching for white and black Nike shoes and sorting through the inevitable thousands of options is a Sisyphean task. Believe me, I tried. Many suggestions and close comparisons have been thrown out online, but none seem to fit quite right to me. The pontiff’s right shoe shows a very unusual feature for a Nike sneaker; a break in the midsole on the inner arch.

Zooming in to the right shoe, the seam lines clearly show a split cupsole. This is the break in the tougher outer rubber for the side walls and outsole, exposing softer rubber or foam in the arch of the shoe. The first model that comes to mind when I see this detail is the Reebok Workout Plus, though given the brand affiliation, we can cross that off the list right away.

Okay, let’s try the left shoe then. Maybe the lateral sides will give us a better picture. Returning to the midsole, there is no split at the midfoot, and the shape is closer to an Air Force 1. Plenty of Jordan shoes are also built on similar tooling, as is the Dunk. None of these are sufficient in explaining the cupsole. This is not an immediately recognizable silhouette, but maybe it is time to start scrolling through the Nike website. There are plenty of budget models out there that do not get coverage on sneaker blogs like ours, but are still present in stores around the world. I began by filtering their mens’ offerings into the most applicable categories; lifestyle shoes, in white, and sorted by price, low to high. Pope Bobby P seems like a frugal guy, so that last filter is more of a hunch than a real lead.

One of my first finds is the SB Force 58. This is promising, and equally funny to think about the Pope ready to bust out a kickflip should the need arise. The all white palette and general shape & paneling look good, time to check the medial sole wall…no dice. On to the next one.

Our next contender is the Court Vision Low. The toe panels don’t seem to fit the bill, but the sole does. Turn it around to the other side… and another strike out. This is not going well.

The Jordan Skyline caught my eye. Could the pope be wearing Jordans? Unfortunately, another swing, another miss. Time for another tactic: Ebay.

Looking at older Nike listings, the Prestige III sneaker came up. The paneling around the heel and toe looks promising, but the sole doesn’t match. Nike has to have used this cupsole design before, why can’t I find it?

At this point, I’ve been sifting through Ebay listings for two hours. This feels hopeless. There are endless Nike shoes for sale, and I haven’t found a single instance of a split cupsole. I embarked on this quest and have nothing to show for it. Only a few more pages, and I’ll forget about it. Wait. I found it. The split cupsole on the inner wall. The paneling. All white color blocking. This is the one, the holy grail of the last eight hours of my life. The Nike Franchise Low.

I am positive this is the one. Doing a little more digging, Pope Leo was really digging into the archives. The Franchise model was originally released in the ’70s and ’80s as a tennis model, before making a brief reappearance around 2008 under the name Franchise Low Plus. Information past that is very limited, but now that we know, maybe Nike will chime in and tell us the story behind the sneaker. Some pairs are available on Ebay, mostly used and in odd sizes. The white pair from the listing can be found here, while two additional brown suede colors can be found here and here. For about $20, you can dress like the pope.

Several hours of scrolling through discount sneaker websites, vintage sellers, and Ebay, and we found it. Thank you for tuning in. For more sneaker news, releases, and the occasional manic search for a lost silhouette, stay tuned to JustFreshKicks on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.

Words by Ben Serleth