VATICAN CITY, Holy See (AFP)— As cardinals prepare to elect a new pope, thousands are doing so already, in a new video game that allows users to pick their favourites as the next pontiff.

Almost 60,000 people have signed up to Fantapapa, an online game that plays on Italians’ passion for football and the Church, since it launched after Pope Francis died last week, its creators said Tuesday.

“People are intrigued by Vatican power dynamics,” Pietro Pace, 42, one of the website’s two founders, told AFP.

“Playing allows them to try to get inside these dynamics and remove some of the mystery that shrouds them.”

The game mimics fantasy league, a pastime of many sports fans where users pretend to be managers of professional teams. Football fantasy league in Italy is known as “Fantacalcio”.

Fantapapa — papa is the Italian word for pope — asks players to choose a squad of 11 cardinals, including a captain (the “most papable” cardinal) and a goalkeeper (the least likely winner), providing an insight on users’ favourite frontrunners.

As of Tuesday, Matteo Zuppi was the cardinal picked by the most people, followed by Pietro Parolin, Luis Antonio Tagle, and Pierbattista Pizzaballa — more or less in line with bookies’ expectations.

But the top 10 also featured some dark horses.

Cardinal Fabio Baggio ranked seventh, possibly because he shared the surname with Italian football legend Roberto Baggio, Pace said.

Sixth was Jose Advincula of the Philippines, who is first in alphabetical order and thus an easy pick for users rushing to complete their roster.

Mykola Bychok, the Ukrainian archbishop of Melbourne in Australia — currently the world’s youngest cardinal — was the top choice in goal, meaning most players do not believe he will become pope.

Points are also assigned to those who guess, among other things, the new pope’s political leaning, his religious order, language and the name he will take.

The most voted options in the latter category were Francis, John, Pius, Paul and Leo.

The brainchild of Pace, an AI worker, and Mauro Vanetti, a game developer, Fantapapa has no money prize because its creators are anti-gambling activists.

Winners will be granted “eternal glory” instead, Pace said.

Pope Francis died aged 88 on April 21. The conclave to elect his successor will begin on May 7.