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Pope Leo XIV Schedules June Visit to Spain, Including Sagrada Familia Inauguration and Migrant Meetings
The Vatican published the itinerary on May 6, 2026, for Pope Leo XIV's six-day trip to Spain. The schedule includes meetings in Madrid with the king and prime minister, a Mass at Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, and visits to migrant centers in the Canary Islands.
May 6, 8:16 AM·2m read3 sources
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Pope Leo XIV will visit Spain from June 6 to June 12, according to the itinerary published by the Vatican on May 6, 2026. 4 billion Catholics. The schedule begins in Madrid, where the pope will meet King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia on June 6.
He will preside over a prayer vigil with young people that recalls the 2011 World Youth Day hosted in the city under Pope Benedict XVI. On June 7 he will hold a massive outdoor Mass in central Madrid. He is set to meet Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on June 8 and hold a gathering with the diocesan community at Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabéu stadium.
Pope Leo XIV will then travel to Barcelona. He will preside over a prayer vigil at the Olympic Stadium on the evening of June 9. On June 10 he will celebrate Mass at the Sagrada Familia basilica and inaugurate the Tower of Jesus Christ.
The Mass coincides with the 100th anniversary of the death of the basilica's architect, Antoni Gaudí. 5 meters. Gaudí was declared venerable by the Catholic Church in 2025, though Spain's bishops stated he will not be canonized during the visit.
The pope will also visit the Canary Islands. He will meet organizations working with migrants in Las Palmas, meet migrants at a reception center in Tenerife, and hold separate meetings with Spanish groups assisting them there. The Canary Islands lie roughly 65 miles from the closest point in Africa.
Migrant arrivals peaked in 2024 with nearly 47,000 landings, according to Spain’s Interior Ministry data. Just over 2,000 migrants arrived in the first four months of 2026. Spain has a population of 50 million that now includes around 10 million foreign-born residents, or one in every five people.
An estimated half a million people live in the country without authorization, according to the Spanish government. The pope is scheduled to deliver 22 speeches and homilies during the visit. The last papal visit to Spain took place in August 2011, when Pope Benedict XVI attended World Youth Day in Madrid.
