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.