Overview
- A Vatican News trailer for Leone a Roma, a film marking his first year as pope, briefly shows him walking in white shoes with a black Nike Swoosh.
- Sneaker analysts, led by Ben Serlith of JustFreshKicks, identified the pair as the vintage Nike Franchise Low Plus.
- The clip drew heavy engagement on social platforms, including a Reddit screenshot that gained tens of thousands of upvotes.
- The Franchise Low is an obscure 1970s tennis style reissued around 2008, and used pairs often list online for about $20 to $50.
- Commentators floated marketing angles for Nike, but there is no company statement or verified market effect tied to the footage.