Pope Leo XIV arrived in Madrid on Saturday for a seven-day visit to Spain — his first to an EU country outside Italy — that will take him from the capital to Barcelona and then to the Canary Islands, an Atlantic archipelago that has become one of Europe's most prominent entry points for migrants crossing from northwest Africa. The itinerary blends formal diplomacy, pastoral encounters and a clear humanitarian message that has already reshaped political dynamics in his host country.

The visit has been received with remarkable fanfare in a nation whose relationship with Catholicism has grown considerably more complicated in recent decades. Only around one in five Spaniards now describes themselves as a practising Catholic, down from a much higher share a generation ago, and fewer than half of children are baptised. Yet more than half a million people registered to attend outdoor masses in Madrid's Plaza de Cibeles and Barcelona's Olympic stadium, the city of Madrid decorated its streets with 100,000 Vatican-coloured flowers, and 13,000 police officers were deployed for the occasion. Notably, a recent survey found that Catholic identification among 15-to-29-year-olds rose from 31.6% in 2020 to 45% last year, suggesting a modest spiritual revival among younger Spaniards even as the institutional church's authority has weakened. Not everyone is welcoming: secular organisations have called for protests against the church's tax privileges and state subsidies for religious schools.

The political centrepiece of the trip is Leo's Thursday visit to the port of Arguineguín on the island of Gran Canaria, where he will meet migrants and the aid workers who support them — and where survivors of the Atlantic crossing will recount their experiences. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will accompany the pope. At least 1,172 people died attempting the crossing last year. Leo, the first American pontiff, has been outspoken on migration, criticising the Trump administration's treatment of foreigners as