On Sunday, 1 November, the men’s and women’s basketball teams from the University of Notre Dame and Villanova University will play against each other at the Palazzo dello Sport in Rome, Italy, kicking off the collegiate basketball season in the United States.

In addition to bringing together Pope Leo XIV’s alma mater and arguably America’s most famous Catholic university, the Eternal City Tip-Off also brings together the universities’ respective religious congregations: the Order of Saint Augustine for Villanova and the Congregation of Holy Cross for Notre Dame.

Members from both congregations will be joining the weekend’s events, including the Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica and the private audience with Pope Leo XIV on Saturday, as well as the basketball games on Sunday. Among them will be Br. Paul Bednarczyk, C.S.C., Superior General of the Congregation of Holy Cross, and Fr. Joseph Farrel, O.S.A., Prior General of the Order of Saint Augustine.

Having known each other years ago in the United States, Br. Bednarczyk and Fr. Farrell have found a deeper fraternity in Rome as they lead their religious congregations around the world. In fact, it was precisely over a meal together at the Augustinian Generalate, as they were sharing ideas from their respective general chapters, when the conversation turned to the upcoming basketball games between Villanova and Notre Dame.

“We talked about how exciting the games were going to be, not only for our universities, but also our religious congregations, given the importance of education in our missions. That is when we had the idea to make a little fraternal bet between ourselves,” explained Br. Bednarczyk.

Learn more about the Congregation of Holy Cross

Fr. Farrell and Br. Bednarczyk quickly settled on the bet itself: the winner would be the congregation whose university’s teams had the higher combined score from the women’s and men’s games. It took a little longer to settle on the stakes, but after some conversation, they decided on two fundamentals of the consecrated life: prayer and fellowship. The congregation with the lower combined score would host the other’s general administration for a Mass and dinner at their Generalate in Rome.

"What is nice about the brotherly bet that we have waged is that no matter what the outcome of the two basketball games, the members of the General Curia of the Order of Saint Augustine and the Congregation of the Holy Cross will be able to share in an evening of fraternal dialogue and delicious food," said Fr. Farrell.

Beyond the good-natured, fraternal bet, Br. Bednarczyk and Fr. Farrell emphasized the importance of the games of the Eternal City Tip-Off, drawing attention to the essential work of Catholic higher education, which is an important part of each religious congregation’s mission. The Congregation of Holy Cross speaks of “evangelizing as educators in the faith” as one of its two “congregational mission priorities”, and likewise the Order of Saint Augustine talks of “Christian formation and education” as a “special mission” and a “wonderful and solemn vocation.”

In carrying out that mission and vocation, both Villanova University and the University of Notre Dame have various initiatives in which they collaborate with the Vatican.

Read about the Order of St. Augustine 

Villanova, for example, recently hosted the Villanova University International Sustainability Conference in Rome and Castel Gandolfo from 12-15 October, during which they awarded the inaugural Pope Leo XIV Sustainability Medal to Cardinal Michael Czerny, S.J. Notre Dame, for its part, has teamed up with the Laudato Si’ Center for Higher Education to establish the Global Alliance for Laudato Si’, which held its inaugural meeting in Castel Gandolfo earlier this year from 9-10 March. These are just two of the many ways both higher education institutions seek to put themselves at the service of the Church and the world.

While this collaboration reaches around the world, it begins with the students whom the universities serve and teach on their campuses. It will be some of those students who will be playing on the basketball court and cheering from the stands on Sunday afternoon in Rome.

“During the Jubilee Year, Pope Leo said that sport teaches us the values of cooperation, working together, and sharing,” said Br. Bednarczyk. “These are the same values that both Notre Dame and Villanova pass on to their students on their campuses every day. To see these Catholic values played out on a basketball court in Rome, the heart of Catholicism, is pretty special. Yes, the game is about competition, but it's also about celebrating who and what we are as Catholic universities.”

As for the bet, Br. Bednarczyk added, “I look forward to praying with the Augustinians and sharing in some good conversation and a good meal, but mostly, I look forward to doing this at their house, not ours.”

“I have already been generously hosted twice at the Holy Cross Generalate, and I look forward to receiving their hospitality again following these games,” responded Fr. Farrell.