Pope's audience at Rio's Copacabana beach rivals Rolling Stones concert
1.7m fans saw Stones rock Copacabana beach in 2006 - Francis draws 1.5m shrieking followers
Pope Francis has shown that his message of renewed faith in Jesus Christ can compete with the Rolling Stones and their Sympathy for the Devil.
Seven years after the rock legends lured throngs to Copacabana in Brazil for an epic concert, organisers of a Catholic youth event say the pope attracted 1.5 million to Rio de Janeiro's legendary beach.
Apart from the New Year's fireworks that attract countless revellers to the crescent moon-shaped beach every year, nobody had brought so many people to Copacabana until Mick Jagger and Keith Richards came to town.
On February 18, 2006, the British superstars drew the biggest crowd of their storied career.
Various estimates say between one million and 1.7 million people flooded the beach to see their "Bigger Band" tour.
But 76-year-old Pope Francis showed he commands just as much star power as Jagger, who turned 70 yesterday.