Pope Leo XIV live updates: Cardinal says Leo will be ‘darn good Pope’ as White House downplays Trump tensions

Pope Leo spent the days leading up to the secretive vote in the Vatican that would make him the first American head of the Catholic Church watching the film Conclave so he knew what to expect, his brother has revealed.

Pope Leo XIV, formerly Cardinal Robert Prevost, emerged on the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica on Thursday night as the 267th pontiff, following four rounds of voting during the conclave.

Tom Watling has the full story:

The White House says there is no bad blood between Donald Trump and the new pope, Leo XIV, despite the latter’s apparent criticism of JD Vance previously.

In a briefing on Friday, press secretary Karoline Leavitt reiterated a post by the president on Truth Social on Thursday, in which he hailed Leo.

“He is very proud to have an American pope,” Leavitt in response the prior social media posts. “It’s a great thing for the United States of America and for the world, and we are praying for him.”

As a cardinal, Leo – previously Cardinal Robert Prevost – posted online challenging the vice president’s interpretation of Catholic theology.

Villanova University has congratulated its alumnus, Robert Prevost on his election as pope.

Leo completed his undergraduate studies at Villanova, in Pennsylvania, receiving a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics in 1977.

Speakers blasted the songs as the U.S. electors shared their thoughts on the first American-born pope, Cardinal Robert Prevost – now Pope Leo XIV.

“I took a look at Bob and he had his head in his hands and I was praying for him,” said Cardinal Joseph Tobin – Archbishop of Newark – describing the moment when he cast his vote in the Sistine Chapel. “And then when he accepted, it was like it was made for him.”

The cardinals met on a stage decorated with the Stars and Stripes and a Vatican flag at the Pontifical North American College.

Some said Prevost’s U.S. nationality wasn’t a factor. They were most concerned with “who among us can bring us together, who among us can strengthen the faith and bring the faith to places where it has grown weak,” Cardinal Wilton Gregory said.

As Chicago-native Robert Francis Prevost walked out on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica on Thursday, sports fans in unison had one question.

James Liddell answers the all-important question: Does the American Pope root for the Chicago Cubs or the Chicago White Sox?

Robert Prevost, now Pope Leo XIV, chose to spend his first night as pontiff at his old residence, in a sign he may break with tradition.

Leo spent Thursday night in the Sant’Uffizio Palace, and not the Apostolic Palace where popes traditionally reside, Vatican news reported.

Francis chose to live in an apartment in the Santa Maria guest house.

In his first hours as pope, Leo went back to his old apartment to see colleagues, according to selfies posted to social media.

Vatican Media also showed him praying in the moments after his election before emerging on the loggia of St. Peter’s Basilica to greet Rome and the world.

A Vatican expert predicts a potentially challenging dynamic between the newly elected Pope Leo XIV and US President Donald Trump.

While President Trump expressed excitement and honour at an American leading the 1.4 billion-member Catholic Church, the Pope’s past social media activity suggests potential friction.

But UK theologian Professor Anna Rowlands, who met Pope Leo XIV hours after his election, believes the new pontiff will navigate these complexities with a balance of diplomacy and conviction.