In Argentina, debates over Pope Francis' legacy lead to one question: Why didn’t he return?

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) — Jorge Mario Bergoglio, born in Buenos Aires, never set foot in his homeland after becoming Pope Francis in 2013.

That left many of the faithful in Argentina feeling puzzled and snubbed by the world’s first Latin American pope. The question of why he never returned quickly dominated airwaves and headlines on Tuesday in Buenos Aires.

Francis, who died Monday, said little about his decision to steer clear of Argentina. But Vatican insiders and interlocutors said the pontiff wanted to avoid getting swept up in the polarizing politics that characterized his country.

“It’s sad, because we should have been proud to have an Argentine pope,” said Ardina Aragon, 94, a longtime friend and neighbor from the middle-class neighborhood of Flores where Francis was born in 1936. “I think there were political factors that influenced him.”

Francis, a devotee of soccer, tango and other signature aspects of Argentine culture, was known to have tense relationships with some of his country’s leaders. His ideological clash with President Javier Milei, who took office in 2023, created even more challenges.

Argentina celebrated Francis’ becoming pope with an ecstasy otherwise reserved for the country's three World Cup soccer championships. But that initial excitement over the former archbishop of Buenos Aires faded as the years passed.

A recent Pew Research Center report showed that Francis’ popularity had dropped more in Argentina than anywhere else in the region over the last decade. About 64% of respondents said they had a positive view of Francis in September 2024, compared with 91% in 2014.

“There are many among us who think he made mistakes. Not everyone in our community is proud of the association,” said Adriana Lombardi, 62, a retired teacher in Buenos Aires, referring to traditionalist Catholics in Argentina and beyond who accused Francis of leading the church astray.

Some in Buenos Aires felt slighted by Francis' avoidance of Argentina.

“Despite his history here, it seems like he doesn't care about us," said Bruno Rentería, 19, who was praying in front of an icon of the Virgin Mary at the Basílica de San José de Flores in Buenos Aires. Older churchgoers recalled the very confessional where Bergoglio, at age 16, had first heard the call to the priesthood. “It's odd because it seems like he has time for everyone else.”

Some trace those tensions to when he was archbishop of Buenos Aires during the leftist tenures of the late former President Néstor Kirchner and his successor and wife, the divisive Cristina Fernández de Kirchner, whose strain of populism dominated Argentine politics for decades.

Francis and Fernández de Kirchner were unfriendly neighbors in Plaza de Mayo, the central square that hosts both the government headquarters and the cathedral where Francis delivered homilies during much of her presidency from 2007-15.

From the pulpit, Francis criticized the “exhibitionism” and autocratic tendencies of Argentina’s political class — a subtle dig that the Kirchners interpreted as a direct attack. His support for the Vatican’s conservative positions on key social issues deepened rifts with Fernández de Kirchner’s progressive government as it expanded sex education and, in 2010, legalized same-sex marriage — a first for Latin America.

Perhaps most significantly, supporters of the Kirchners accused Francis of complicity in Argentina’s 1976-83 military dictatorship, when as many as 30,000 people were estimated by human rights groups to have been killed or simply “disappeared.” Francis was head of Argentina’s Jesuit order during those violent years, when the junta targeted radical clerics and priests who worked with the poor.

Francis rejected the accusations of complicity. In his 2024 memoir, “Life: My Story Through History,” he recalled hiding wanted activists and pressing military officials behind the scenes to free two abducted priests from his order.

Eventually, Kirchner's social welfare policies resonated with Bergoglio. The two drew closer after he became pontiff and set about softening the image of an institution that had long appeared forbidding.

"Conservatives in Argentina failed to understand his change of attitude," said Sergio Berensztein, who runs a political consultancy in Buenos Aires.

Unsettled by his critiques of the excesses of capitalism, right-wing critics branded Francis the “Peronist pope” — a reference to the Argentine populist movement founded by three-time President Juan Domingo Perón, who employed an authoritarian hand and powerful state to champion social justice causes.

From that point on, Berensztein said, Francis “felt everything he said or did would lead to fighting on either side of the divide.”

Francis' politics came under more scrutiny in 2016, when he wore an unusually grim expression while posing for a photo beside former President Mauricio Macri, Kirchner’s conservative successor, whose austerity program battered the poor.

The awkward photo op paled in comparison to Francis’ discomfort with what followed.

Milei, a former television pundit and corporate economist, called Francis an “imbecile” and “the representative of the Evil One on Earth" before coming to power in 2023. He lashed out at the pope for promoting social justice, supporting taxes and sympathizing with “murderous communists.”

Francis expressed sympathy for the strife of Argentines pulled into poverty as they bore the brunt of Milei’s fiscal shock therapy, voicing concern over what he called a “save yourself approach” to doing politics and publicly criticizing Argentine security forces for using pepper spray against Argentine retirees protesting for better pensions.

The Vatican described a meeting between Francis and Milei in 2024 as “cordial,” but ideological differences resurfaced with the ascension of Milei’s political ally, U.S. President Donald Trump.

Since Trump's reelection, Francis has intensified direct attacks on the administration, criticizing its mass deportation of migrants and other policies.

“Francis cultivated a social doctrine in the church that generated opposition, particularly among conservatives in the United States,” said Sergio Rubin, an Argentine journalist and Francis' authorized biographer.

After a dozen years of papal travel — including to nearly all Argentina’s neighbors — Francis referenced a plan to visit his native land last year. Nothing came of it.

“He went to Brazil, Peru, Chile; he passed over our heads,” said Lucia Vidal, a retired nurse who attended Bergoglio’s Mass when he was archbishop. “That pains me."

In contrast, Pope John Paul II visited his native Poland less than a year after becoming pontiff in 1978. His successor, Pope Benedict XVI, chose his native Germany for his first foreign trip in 2005.

Other Argentines seemed less indignant about the snub and more grateful for his contributions to the impoverished neighborhoods of Buenos Aires, where Bergoglio first earned fame as the “slum bishop," leading processions, creating a cadre of priests who follow in his footsteps and founding shelters for homeless addicts and community centers on violence-scarred streets.

“I can’t express what his humility, his open hands, meant to me, my family, my neighborhood,” said Angela Cano, 51, at a Mass held in his honor Monday at Villa 21-24, a neglected suburb near the railroad. "We saw up close how he was the pope of the people. He helped us find God.”

Back in Flores, Carlos Liva, 66, a retired cab driver, said that he couldn't begrudge the pope for prioritizing the rest of the world after spending most of his years in Argentina.

“It's clear that he felt at ease in Rome,” Liva said. ”In his own country, people found every reason to question him."

Natacha Pisarenko contributed to this report.

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.

The Cathedral, left, stands in Buenos Aires' main square, Argentina, following the Vatican's announcement of Pope Francis' death, Monday, April 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Victor R. Caivano)

Maria Teresa Delgado holds a portrait of the late Pope Francis during Mass at the Basílica de San José de Flores, where he worshipped as a youth, following the Vatican's announcement of his death in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Monday, April 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Gustavo Garello)

Genali Nogales touches a painting of the late Pope Francis at the Basílica de San José de Flores, where he worshipped as a youth, following the Vatican's announcement of his death in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Monday, April 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Gustavo Garello)

FILE - Argentina's President Javier Milei speaks at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center, Feb. 22, 2025, in Oxon Hill, Md. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

FILE - Pope Francis waves during the Angelus noon prayer delivered from his studio window overlooking St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican, Oct. 4, 2020. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia, File)

FILE - Argentine presidential candidate Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, right, and Argentina's President Nestor Kirchner wave to supporters at their headquarters in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Oct. 28, 2007. (AP Photo/Daniel Luna, File)

FILE - A man rides a bicycle near a weathered mural of Pope Francis in Buenos Aires, Argentina, March 2, 2023. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko, File)

FILE - Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, second from left, travels on the subway in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 2008. (AP Photo/Pablo Leguizamon, File)

FILE - In this Aug. 7, 2009 file photo, Argentina's Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio gives a Mass outside the San Cayetano church where an Argentine flag hangs behind in Buenos Aires, Argentina. (AP Photo/Natacha Pisarenko, file)

Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford talks about having an All-Pro season at age 37, credits his teammates and coach Sean McVay for his success and says his primary focus is on advancing in the playoffs.

Rob Maaddi, host: Welcome to On Football, I’m Rob Maaddi. We’re down to eight teams in the running for the Super Bowl. Only eight get a chance to lift the Vince Lombardi Trophy. We will break down all of the NFL divisional-round games in Pro Picks coming up. Our guest this week, LA Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford. Matthew, last week, was named first team Associated Press All-Pro for the first time in his 17-year NFL career. He had a very cool reaction when I shared the news with him. So did Puka Nacua, Will Anderson, and a bunch of other guys. If you missed it, check out my social, AP social. All of those reactions, very cool. It’s always great to see guys react to wonderful news.

Matthew Stafford is the only one of the eight remaining starting quarterbacks in the playoffs who has actually won a Super Bowl, but no one has more pressure than Josh Allen. Last week in Jacksonville on the road, he willed the Bills to victory. He kept getting knocked down, took a physical beating and carried them to the finish line. Got the W and this week they’re on the road against Denver. We’ll break down that game, coming up. But for whatever reason, it seems that Josh Allen is held to a higher standard. A lot of analysts, especially former players, are so eager to see him fail, and they want to put all of Buffalo’s hopes squarely on Josh Allen. So if receivers drop the ball, running backs fumble, defense gives up 50 points, they’re ready and eager to blame Josh Allen for the loss. Football is the ultimate team sport and while the quarterback and someone of the magnitude of Josh Allen is gonna have a lot of input on how the game plays out, it’s still a team sport, and you gotta wait to see how it plays out before you dish out the blame for a loss that didn’t even occur. It just doesn’t make any sense.

Matthew Stafford had his best season at age 37. I spent a few minutes chatting with him last week about being a first team All-Pro, playing for coach Sean McVay and more. I’m down here in Tampa, so I got to see the tail end of Tom Brady, what he did at 43, 44, 45. What you did this year at 37 is right up there with the greatest seasons of all time. I appreciate that. What’s it take to be able to get that done, man?

Matthew Stafford, Los Angeles Rams quarterback: Great teammates, to be honest with you. A lot of hard work and dedication to try and keep myself upright and out there for those guys because that’s who I care about. But I’m lucky to play with a bunch of great players that, you know, help me along the way, make my job easy, and you know my job is just to get them the rock and as best I possibly can. So it’s been a whole lot of fun, a lot of people involved in keeping me healthy and going, but it’s, it’s been a great year. It’s been fun.

MAADDI: How much do you appreciate playing for a guy like Coach McVay?

STAFFORD: I love it. He’s close in age to me. We’ve got a lot of great shared experiences now throughout the years. And just my appreciation for him is huge. I just love playing for him. Love getting to spend time with him. Love the way he coaches our team, me in particular, He’s as steady of a human being as I’ve been around. And I appreciate that about him.

MAADDI: I know you’re all about team goals and you’re trying to win another Super Bowl, but do you set time aside at all? Do you, are you able to reflect about the personal things, the personal accomplishments? Is there any, like you want to check off, check this, I did this, I got that, you know, anything like that.

STAFFORD: Um, you know, I think I’m just so in the middle of it right now, you know, and, and there’s so much to do and so much to, uh, you know, to accomplish as a team. I really want to keep my focus on that. Obviously, I do understand and appreciate, um, you know, the importance of, uh this game and, and, uh you know what it’s meant throughout the years and the history of it, but at the same time, I just want to do everything I can to be the best teammate I can and help our guys continue, to continue this journey because it has been so fun. We’ve got such a great group. I want to make sure that I do everything in my power to make sure that we get to come back to work next week and do it again.

MAADDI: How special would an MVP be if that were to happen?

STAFFORD: It would mean a lot. I think it would be an unbelievable team award because especially the way I play the game as quarterback, I’m not running around holding the ball for forever. I’m getting it to guys that are making great plays and doing unbelievable things. So many guys to thank if that ever did happen. But it is... It’s a special one. It’s one that means a lot. I understand the history of this game and so many great players before me and to be mentioned in any kind of breath with those guys would mean a lot.

MAADDI: Well, Matthew. Here’s one you don’t have to wait on. We’re gonna announce on Saturday The Associated Press All-Pro rosters. You are the first-team quarterback.

STAFFORD: Oh, hell, that’s amazing. I appreciate that. I did not know that was coming. Man, played a lot of years. A lot of respect for this game. A lot respect for the other guys that do what I do. It’s not an easy thing to do. So, it means a lot. I really appreciate that, thank you.

MAADDI: Good luck down the road and hope to see you maybe in San Francisco.

STAFFORD: Hey, I appreciate it, Rob. Thanks, man.

MAADDI: Time for some Pro Picks, we were 5-1 straight up last week, 4-2 against the spread, my best bet one didn’t cover, upset special was money again. The 4-pack was a 2-pack last week because I just didn’t love the games. This week we’re back to a full four-pack, which is 53-20-1 overall, 45-28-1 against the number that start with the best bet and again I’m looking at the LA Rams, 13-5, at Chicago. The Bears are 12-6. The Rams are 3.5 point road favorites. Matthew Stafford had to rally LA after they blew a 14-0 lead against Carolina in a game that shouldn’t have been that close. Ended up winning 34-31. The Ram’s are going to need an effort out of their defense. Over the last five games, LA has averaged giving up 30 points. Meanwhile, the Bears are the comeback kids. They were down 21-3 at halftime against Green Bay. Caleb Williams led them to their seventh fourth-quarter comeback win this year. They just can’t continue to do that. You’ve got to play a full four quarter game or else at some point it’s going to catch up to you and I think that’s this week. I’m taking the Rams, 30-23. For my upset special, which they are 14-5 straight up, 15-4 against the spread this season, I’m looking at Houston at New England. Texans are 13-5, Patriots are 15-3, New England is a 3-point favorite, Houston has the No. 1 defense in the NFL, and they showed it against Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers. Ended Mike Tomlin’s coaching career in Pittsburgh, dominated that game, scored two touchdowns on defense. They have an All-Pro edge rusher in Will Anderson Jr. Their cornerback Derek Stingley is an All-Pro. They just need CJ Stroud to protect the football this week and I think he will. The Patriots also, last week against the Chargers, they relied on defense, they won 16-3, they shut down Justin Herbert. Drake Maye led the team in rushing. He had a great season in his second year in the NFL. They’re gonna need him to be outstanding, elite against this defense, against Houston, the best in the NFL. I see the Texans sneaking in, 17-16. Next, the Saturday games. Buffalo, 13-5, at Denver, 14-3. Broncos are just a one-point favorite. Josh Allen, as I said earlier, he did everything last week. Now he’s gonna face the number two defense. He’s going to need more help from his teammates. Rushing champion James Cook had only 46 yards against Jacksonville. He’s got to get going this week. The Broncos, they’re also stacked on defense. They’ve got an All-Pro in the interior of the line, Zach Allen. Nik Bonitto on the edge is a monster. Patrick Surtain at cornerback was the defensive player of the year last year. They had 68 sacks, franchise record this season on offense. Bo Nix, they’ve also been comeback kids. He’s led seven fourth-quarter comebacks. He’s going to go against the NFL’s number one pass defense. But the Broncos are the number one seed. They were home, they were off last week. Meanwhile, the Bills played on Sunday. They got a little bit of a shorter rest. I like the Broncos, 24-22. Lastly, San Francisco, 13-5, at Seattle, 14-3. The Seahawks are 7.5-point favorites. It’s the third time these two teams meet. They played for the NFC’s number one seed in Week 18 in San Fran. Seattle won that 13-3. 49ers beat the Seahawks earlier in the season on the road. Last week, the Niners lost George Kittle and still found a way to beat the Eagles, eliminate the defending Super Bowl champions. Christian McCaffrey had two touchdowns, Brock Purdy made all the plays. They keep losing star players, whether it’s Nick Bosa and Fred Warner earlier in the season, and they continue to find ways to be resilient to win, to be in this position. Meanwhile, Seattle, number one seed, they were off last week, they’re at home. They’re gonna need Sam Darnold not to make mistakes. The Niners have to make Sam Darnold beat them They’ve got to try and to shut down that run and put it all on Sam Darnold. I do not like the fact that the 49ers played a Sunday game on the East Coast and now have to play on a Saturday. Terrible decision-making by the NFL schedule makers They could have put Seattle and San Fran on Sunday because the Bears and the Rams played on Saturday, so they get an extra day rest. And the 49ers get the shaft. I think all of those injuries, the travel, the time, everything catches up to them. I’m taking the Seahawks, 23-20. That’s it for this week. Thank you to Matthew Stafford.

Thank you for watching and listening to On Football and thank you to Haya Panjwani and Mike Hempen for producing this episode. Please check out APNews.com for all of the Pro Picks, On Football analysis and more NFL news.

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Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford answers question after an NFL wild-card playoff football game against the Carolina Panthers, Saturday, Jan. 10, 2026, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Rusty Jones)