French football star Kylian Mbappé is facing mounting backlash in China after comments apparently referring to former Chinese leader Mao Zedong as a dictator sparked outrage, prompting sponsors to cut ties and disrupting Spanish football broadcasts.
China’s state broadcaster CCTV has warned that the striker’s apology will ultimately be judged by his actions.
“We will listen to his words, but watch his actions even more closely,” an unnamed China Media Group representative said on 27 October, urging Mbappé, Real Madrid and La Liga to learn from the incident and address the fallout.
A day earlier, CCTV had suspended coverage of La Liga matches and games involving Mbappé, while also withdrawing advertisements featuring the French forward.
His accounts on Chinese social media platforms Xiaohongshu and Weibo were subsequently muted, according to Renmin Ruiping, an online commentary platform operated by the People’s Daily.
As of 28 October, it remained unclear whether the broadcasts would resume or the restrictions on his accounts would be lifted.
How The Controversy Began
The backlash erupted after a clip from the French programme The Bridge circulated online, showing Mbappé discussing a meme that superimposed his face onto that of Mao, the founding leader of the People’s Republic of China.
According to Reuters, Mbappé described the image as the funniest meme he had seen of himself, referring to the person depicted as “some guy — I think he’s a Chinese dictator”.
Reuters said it could not independently authenticate the video.
Mao remains a highly significant and sensitive figure in China’s political history, helping explain the strong reaction to the remarks.
On 27 October, Mbappé issued an apology in Chinese, French and English through a statement on X, acknowledging that his comments were ill-judged and had hurt Chinese communities around the world.
“I have deep respect for the Chinese people and their history, and I am sincerely sorry,” he said.
La Liga also issued a statement expressing deep regret over the hurt caused to Chinese fans, stressing that Mbappé’s personal views did not represent the Spanish league’s position.
Sponsors Begin Cutting Ties
The controversy has also triggered commercial consequences for the Real Madrid forward.
Chinese companies Dongpeng Beverage, Mengniu and cheese maker Milkground announced that they were ending their partnerships with Mbappé, according to company statements compiled by China.org.cn.
Dongpeng’s sports drink brand Bushuila had only unveiled him as its ambassador in April this year.
Meanwhile, sportswear brand On and luxury fashion house Dior reportedly removed Chinese promotional content featuring the footballer. However, neither had announced a global termination of its relationship with him, according to Chinese media outlet Phoenix.
The scale of the backlash was also reflected in social media activity. Mbappé had around one million followers each on Xiaohongshu and Weibo, while four topics related to the footballer ranked among Weibo’s top 10 searches on 27 October, Reuters reported.
Chinese Officials And State Media Respond
People’s Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party’s Central Committee, reinforced the criticism through its online commentary platform Renmin Ruiping.
The commentary argued that celebrities who cross public boundaries can become liabilities for brands, adding that companies should not expect to profit from a market while offending its people’s cherished history and culture.
China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun also addressed the controversy, saying the ministry was aware of the reports.
“Words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will naturally be met with joint opposition from all sectors of Chinese society,” he said.
Despite Mbappé’s public apology, the full impact on his commercial partnerships and football coverage in China remains uncertain.
