French football star Kylian Mbappé has apologized to the Chinese people, expressing his “sincere regret” following a wave of criticism sparked by a circulating video in which he discussed a satirical image showing his face digitally superimposed on that of former Chinese leader Mao Zedong. The controversy prompted three Chinese companies to terminate their advertising partnerships with him and led to the suspension of Spanish football league broadcasts in China.
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State-owned China Media Group, which oversees China’s official radio and television broadcaster, announced that it would suspend broadcasts of Spanish league matches starting October 26, along with matches and advertisements featuring the player. The group also called on Real Madrid, the club for which Mbappé plays, to issue a “public apology as soon as possible.”
In a statement, the group said the decision followed the player’s “extremely serious remarks.”
Meanwhile, La Liga expressed regret over the offense caused to Chinese fans by Mbappé’s comments, stressing that the remarks were made in his personal capacity and did not represent the league. It also issued an apology on behalf of the league and its clubs.
In a statement released on Tuesday in French, English and Chinese, the French national team captain said: “I apologize to everyone who was offended by my words. That was never my intention. I have deep respect for the Chinese people and their history, and I express my sincere regret.”
Three Chinese companies that had used the player’s name and image in their advertising campaigns announced the immediate termination of their partnerships with him: Dongpeng, a beverage company; Mengniu, a dairy producer; and Milkground, a cheese company.
In similar statements, the companies said they maintained a zero-tolerance policy toward remarks or actions that offend national sentiment.
Dongpeng confirmed that it was ending all forms of cooperation with the player. Mengniu announced the same decision, stating that it opposed any words or actions that offended the feelings of the Chinese people.
Advertisements featuring AI-generated images of Mbappé drinking one of Dongpeng’s sports drinks had been regularly shown in China during this year’s World Cup.
Mengniu, China’s largest dairy producer, was also among the companies that had partnered with the Real Madrid striker, who enjoyed widespread popularity among Chinese fans and had millions of followers on social media platforms.
The circulating video shows Mbappé saying that the funniest image he had seen of himself was one in which his face had been superimposed on that of someone he described as a “Chinese dictator.” The remark referred to an image showing his face on a picture of Mao Zedong, the founder of the People’s Republic of China, who died in 1976.
AFP’s fact-checking service was unable to immediately verify the authenticity of the video.
During a regular press briefing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said that words and actions offending the feelings of the Chinese people would face “unanimous rejection from all sectors of Chinese society.”
The video sparked widespread engagement on Chinese social media, with the hashtag “Dongpeng Beverage ends partnership with Mbappé” topping the trending topics on Weibo.
Dongqiudi, one of China’s largest online football platforms, said Mbappé’s remarks were “offensive to China and the Chinese people” and had hurt the feelings of Chinese football fans and the wider public.
Mbappé is known in China by the nickname “Guigui,” which is associated with satirical images inspired by the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles characters.
Previous controversy over satirical images
In September, Mbappé discussed a satirical image comparing him to an authoritarian military ruler during an interview with French sports newspaper L’Équipe. He said some people treated such images humorously, but added that comparisons with figures responsible for deaths and the suffering of millions were different.
“To be compared with people who kill others or have caused misery for hundreds of millions of people... I don’t think I have done anything like that in my life,” he said.
The controversy in China came a day after Mbappé lost the Ballon d’Or award for the world’s best player to England’s Harry Kane.
Athletes and prominent international sports figures have previously faced commercial repercussions in China over remarks on politically sensitive issues, including Taiwan, Tibet and Hong Kong.
In 2023, former American basketball player Dwight Howard sparked controversy after describing Taiwan as a country in a video featuring the island’s then-vice president and current president, Lai Ching-te. Beijing considers Taiwan part of its territory and has not ruled out using force to bring it under its control.
In 2019, Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey posted a tweet supporting the protests in Hong Kong. The move prompted Chinese entities to suspend sponsorship contracts with the National Basketball Association (NBA) and led to a one-year suspension of NBA game broadcasts on Chinese television.
