ATLANTA — "We have a different kind of religion."
It's 4:30 p.m. on a Thursday, and a man in a pope's hat and striped necktie is explaining his attire ("It's a marriage of church and state") while proffering Jell-O shots in a railroad-adjacent parking lot called The Gulch. His name is Chris Lopez, he bought season tickets three-and-a-half years ago for Atlanta United—an MLS team that just finished its first season—and he's also holding a scepter capped by a soccer ball in the middle of a cross.
"I wanted something to lead my flock with," he says, gesturing to the people munching on various grilled items and sipping adult beverages around him in the shadow of the brand-new Mercedes-Benz Stadium.