Pope Leo draws 800,000 people to central Paris for open-air Mass on iconic square

Hundreds of thousands of people packed Paris’ iconic Champs-Élysées avenue to attend an open-air Mass with Pope Leo XIV on Saturday, a sign of the Catholic Church’s enduring appeal in the once staunchly Catholic but officially secular country.

The Vatican estimated that 800,000 people attended – about 200,000 more than the number who had registered in advance. The turnout testified to the church’s lasting influence in France despite declining attendance and secularizing trends that have emptied churches across Europe.

The American pope greeted the flag-waving, cheering throngs from his popemobile during a 2-kilometre (1.2-mile) parade along the grand boulevard leading to the Place de la Concorde for Mass, essentially the heart of Paris and a symbol of the French republic.