Kylian Mbappé apologises after being dropped by Chinese brands for Mao Zedong comment
✓Kylian Mbappé has apologised after the Real Madrid forward was dropped by major Chinese brands for apparently joking about Mao Zedong in a video that has gone viral. There were also signs of broader repercussions, with the state-run Chinese digital newspaper The Paper reporting that public television was suspending broadcasts of matches from La Liga.
The offending video shows Mbappé saying that the funniest internet meme he had seen involving him was of his face photoshopped on to that of “some guy – I think he’s a Chinese dictator”. This was an apparent reference to a meme of Mbappé superimposed on an image of Mao.
“My comment was ill-judged, and I now understand that it hurt many people in China and in Chinese communities around the world. I apologise to everyone my words have upset,” Mbappé said in a statement in French, Chinese and English.
Spain’s La Liga also apologised, saying it “deeply regrets the offence that Kylian Mbappé’s recent comments have caused among Chinese fans. These comments were made in a personal capacity and do not represent La Liga.” In China, jokes about Mao, the country’s founding leader who died in 1976 – and whose drastic policies are also blamed by historians for mass starvation and millions of deaths – remain taboo.
The beverage giant Dongpeng, which during this year’s World Cup ran adverts with AI-generated images of Mbappé consuming its sport drink, said it was terminating all cooperation with the France captain. “Our company firmly opposes and has a zero-tolerance policy towards any behaviour that offends national sentiments,” Dongpeng said in a statement.
Mengniu, China’s largest dairy producer, and cheese maker Milkground also said that they were cutting ties with Mbappé, who until now was hugely popular among Chinese fans with millions of social media followers. “Dongpeng Beverage ends cooperation with Mbappé” was the top-trending topic on Chinese social media site Weibo with 430 million views.
One Weibo user said the “extremely serious wrong remarks … crossed the red line” and others urged Dongpeng to remove Mbappé’s image from their bottles. Dongqiudi, one of China’s biggest online football outlets, said Mbappé’s remarks were “offensive to China and the Chinese people”.
In an interview with the French sports newspaper L’Equipe last month, the 27-year-old Mbappé addressed a previous meme depicting him as a military dictator. “There’s a part of it that’s funny … but there is another part that’s a bit less funny because of the damage such people have caused throughout history,” he said.
China’s foreign ministry said it was aware of the reports regarding Mbappé, who on Monday finished runner-up to Harry Kane in the Ballon d’Or award for the world’s best player. “Words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will naturally be met with unanimous rejection from all sectors of Chinese society,” spokesperson Guo Jiakun told a regular briefing.
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The Paper cited sources at the state broadcaster saying that CCTV has suspended all broadcasts of La Liga matches, and removed all advertisements involving Mbappé. On the CCTV website, La Liga matches this weekend were still on its online viewing schedule.
Global sports stars who have commented on sensitive topics such as Taiwan, Tibet and Hong Kong have previously caused controversy in China and been dumped by sponsors there. The former NBA player Dwight Howard referred to Taiwan as a country in 2023 as he appeared in a video with the island’s then vice-president and current president, Lai Ching-te, sparking fury on Chinese social media. Beijing claims Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to bring it under its control.
The Houston Rockets general manager, Daryl Morey, posted a tweet in 2019 supporting Hong Kong protests, leading to China suspending sponsorship deals with the NBA and pulling games off Chinese television for a year.
Fans in China made their feelings clear. “I used to really enjoy watching Mbappé play on the pitch,” Zhang Jingqi, 30, who works at a mall in Beijing, said. “But ever since this news broke yesterday I have lost that admiration, sorry to say.”
Read the full story at Al Jazeera ↗ · Sky News ↗ · The Guardian ↗
Video appears to show Mao Zedong called a ‘dictator’. Dongpeng and Mengniu end deals with the player. Kylian Mbappé has apologised after the Real Madrid forward was dropped by…
This lens runs the verified story through Cinnamon's AI — wired in the next step.
Kylian Mbappé has apologised after the Real Madrid forward was dropped by major Chinese brands for apparently joking about Mao Zedong in a video that has gone viral. There were also signs of broader repercussions, with the state-run Chinese digital newspaper The Paper reporting that public television was suspending broadcasts of matches from La Liga.
The offending video shows Mbappé saying that the funniest internet meme he had seen involving him was of his face photoshopped on to that of “some guy – I think he’s a Chinese dictator”. This was an apparent reference to a meme of Mbappé superimposed on an image of Mao.
“My comment was ill-judged, and I now understand that it hurt many people in China and in Chinese communities around the world. I apologise to everyone my words have upset,” Mbappé said in a statement in French, Chinese and English.
Spain’s La Liga also apologised, saying it “deeply regrets the offence that Kylian Mbappé’s recent comments have caused among Chinese fans. These comments were made in a personal capacity and do not represent La Liga.” In China, jokes about Mao, the country’s founding leader who died in 1976 – and whose drastic policies are also blamed by historians for mass starvation and millions of deaths – remain taboo.
The beverage giant Dongpeng, which during this year’s World Cup ran adverts with AI-generated images of Mbappé consuming its sport drink, said it was terminating all cooperation with the France captain. “Our company firmly opposes and has a zero-tolerance policy towards any behaviour that offends national sentiments,” Dongpeng said in a statement.
Mengniu, China’s largest dairy producer, and cheese maker Milkground also said that they were cutting ties with Mbappé, who until now was hugely popular among Chinese fans with millions of social media followers. “Dongpeng Beverage ends cooperation with Mbappé” was the top-trending topic on Chinese social media site Weibo with 430 million views.
One Weibo user said the “extremely serious wrong remarks … crossed the red line” and others urged Dongpeng to remove Mbappé’s image from their bottles. Dongqiudi, one of China’s biggest online football outlets, said Mbappé’s remarks were “offensive to China and the Chinese people”.
In an interview with the French sports newspaper L’Equipe last month, the 27-year-old Mbappé addressed a previous meme depicting him as a military dictator. “There’s a part of it that’s funny … but there is another part that’s a bit less funny because of the damage such people have caused throughout history,” he said.
China’s foreign ministry said it was aware of the reports regarding Mbappé, who on Monday finished runner-up to Harry Kane in the Ballon d’Or award for the world’s best player. “Words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will naturally be met with unanimous rejection from all sectors of Chinese society,” spokesperson Guo Jiakun told a regular briefing.
after newsletter promotion
The Paper cited sources at the state broadcaster saying that CCTV has suspended all broadcasts of La Liga matches, and removed all advertisements involving Mbappé. On the CCTV website, La Liga matches this weekend were still on its online viewing schedule.
Global sports stars who have commented on sensitive topics such as Taiwan, Tibet and Hong Kong have previously caused controversy in China and been dumped by sponsors there. The former NBA player Dwight Howard referred to Taiwan as a country in 2023 as he appeared in a video with the island’s then vice-president and current president, Lai Ching-te, sparking fury on Chinese social media. Beijing claims Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to bring it under its control.
The Houston Rockets general manager, Daryl Morey, posted a tweet in 2019 supporting Hong Kong protests, leading to China suspending sponsorship deals with the NBA and pulling games off Chinese television for a year.
Fans in China made their feelings clear. “I used to really enjoy watching Mbappé play on the pitch,” Zhang Jingqi, 30, who works at a mall in Beijing, said. “But ever since this news broke yesterday I have lost that admiration, sorry to say.”
Read the full story at Al Jazeera ↗ · Sky News ↗ · The Guardian ↗
Kylian Mbappé has apologised after the Real Madrid forward was dropped by major Chinese brands for apparently joking about Mao Zedong in a video that has gone viral. There were also signs of broader repercussions, with the state-run Chinese digital newspaper The Paper reporting that public television was suspending broadcasts of matches from La Liga.
The offending video shows Mbappé saying that the funniest internet meme he had seen involving him was of his face photoshopped on to that of “some guy – I think he’s a Chinese dictator”. This was an apparent reference to a meme of Mbappé superimposed on an image of Mao.
“My comment was ill-judged, and I now understand that it hurt many people in China and in Chinese communities around the world. I apologise to everyone my words have upset,” Mbappé said in a statement in French, Chinese and English.
Spain’s La Liga also apologised, saying it “deeply regrets the offence that Kylian Mbappé’s recent comments have caused among Chinese fans. These comments were made in a personal capacity and do not represent La Liga.” In China, jokes about Mao, the country’s founding leader who died in 1976 – and whose drastic policies are also blamed by historians for mass starvation and millions of deaths – remain taboo.
The beverage giant Dongpeng, which during this year’s World Cup ran adverts with AI-generated images of Mbappé consuming its sport drink, said it was terminating all cooperation with the France captain. “Our company firmly opposes and has a zero-tolerance policy towards any behaviour that offends national sentiments,” Dongpeng said in a statement.
Mengniu, China’s largest dairy producer, and cheese maker Milkground also said that they were cutting ties with Mbappé, who until now was hugely popular among Chinese fans with millions of social media followers. “Dongpeng Beverage ends cooperation with Mbappé” was the top-trending topic on Chinese social media site Weibo with 430 million views.
One Weibo user said the “extremely serious wrong remarks … crossed the red line” and others urged Dongpeng to remove Mbappé’s image from their bottles. Dongqiudi, one of China’s biggest online football outlets, said Mbappé’s remarks were “offensive to China and the Chinese people”.
In an interview with the French sports newspaper L’Equipe last month, the 27-year-old Mbappé addressed a previous meme depicting him as a military dictator. “There’s a part of it that’s funny … but there is another part that’s a bit less funny because of the damage such people have caused throughout history,” he said.
China’s foreign ministry said it was aware of the reports regarding Mbappé, who on Monday finished runner-up to Harry Kane in the Ballon d’Or award for the world’s best player. “Words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will naturally be met with unanimous rejection from all sectors of Chinese society,” spokesperson Guo Jiakun told a regular briefing.
after newsletter promotion
The Paper cited sources at the state broadcaster saying that CCTV has suspended all broadcasts of La Liga matches, and removed all advertisements involving Mbappé. On the CCTV website, La Liga matches this weekend were still on its online viewing schedule.
Global sports stars who have commented on sensitive topics such as Taiwan, Tibet and Hong Kong have previously caused controversy in China and been dumped by sponsors there. The former NBA player Dwight Howard referred to Taiwan as a country in 2023 as he appeared in a video with the island’s then vice-president and current president, Lai Ching-te, sparking fury on Chinese social media. Beijing claims Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to bring it under its control.
The Houston Rockets general manager, Daryl Morey, posted a tweet in 2019 supporting Hong Kong protests, leading to China suspending sponsorship deals with the NBA and pulling games off Chinese television for a year.
Fans in China made their feelings clear. “I used to really enjoy watching Mbappé play on the pitch,” Zhang Jingqi, 30, who works at a mall in Beijing, said. “But ever since this news broke yesterday I have lost that admiration, sorry to say.”
Read the full story at Al Jazeera ↗ · Sky News ↗ · The Guardian ↗
This lens runs the verified story through Cinnamon's AI — wired in the next step.
- Video appears to show Mao Zedong called a ‘dictator’.
- Dongpeng and Mengniu end deals with the player.
- Kylian Mbappé has apologised after the Real Madrid forward was dropped by…