An ill-fated joke by France captain and Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappé cost him advertising deals in China and triggered a diplomatic crisis in the football world. A remark about a meme featuring Mao Zedong outraged Beijing, forcing not only the footballer himself but also the leadership of Spain’s entire La Liga to apologize, UNN reports.
Background
In 2022, Kylian Mbappé extended his contract with PSG instead of moving to Real Madrid. However, information later appeared in the media that the club had granted him significant privileges; in particular, the Frenchman gained influence over the club’s transfer policy and the appointment of head coaches, which led to the dismissal of Mauricio Pochettino and sporting director Leonardo.
For this reason, people on social media began jokingly calling Mbappé a "dictator," and humorous videos also began appearing online depicting Mbappé in military uniform as a dictator.
The meme gained popularity after Xabi Alonso’s departure from Real Madrid, which, according to media reports, was prompted by the players led by Mbappé. The meme became especially popular during the 2026 World Cup, which was held in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
Mbappé was also compared not only to a dictator but to Chinese political leader Mao Zedong.
What preceded the scandal
Recently, during preparations for the French show The Bridge, Mbappé was asked which meme was his favorite.
Mbappé replied: "There are plenty of them. The one that made me laugh the most was when they posted a video of 'some guy'; I think he was a Chinese dictator, and they put my... in there. I use it very often with my friends online, on PlayStation."
Mbappé’s statement immediately drew a negative reaction from China. In particular, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV also removed advertisements featuring Mbappé, while several Chinese companies announced that they were ending their cooperation with the footballer.
Photo: Tribuna.ua
Beverage producer Dongpeng, dairy giant Mengniu, and cheese producer Milkground also published similarly worded statements on Tuesday, announcing the termination of their agreements with the football star and stating that they oppose "any words or actions that hurt national feelings."
The Chinese Football Association said it had "lodged a strong protest" with Real Madrid and demanded that both the player and the football club "publish a public and official apology."
Mbappé apologized on social media platform X, writing: "During a recent interview, I reacted to an image of me that had been placed in a particular scene. This statement was inappropriate, and I now understand that it offended many people in China and in the Chinese community around the world. I apologize to everyone who was hurt by my words. That was absolutely not my intention. I have deep respect for the Chinese people and their history, and I sincerely regret this."
La Liga president Javier Tebas also became involved in the matter.
LALIGA deeply regrets the offense caused to Chinese fans by Kylian Mbappé’s recent comments. These comments were expressed as a personal opinion and do not reflect LALIGA’s position. As part of our institutional responsibility, we apologize on behalf of LALIGA and all its clubs
Javier Tebas said: "I want to personally apologize to Chinese fans for the offense caused. I have deep respect for China, its institutions, and its people, and I value the trust with which they have supported our football for so many years. As president of LALIGA, I take responsibility for working with our clubs and players to strengthen awareness and respect for different cultures. We want to develop these relations through concrete actions and will take specific measures to prevent similar situations from recurring in the future. This commitment will be embodied in an awareness and communication protocol that we will develop jointly with the clubs and players. Its implementation will complement the work we are already carrying out together with our partners and institutional counterparts in China to address this situation."
Why China Took Offense
In May 2018, China’s special "Law on the Protection of Heroes and Martyrs" came into force. It prohibits defaming, insulting, or denying the deeds and achievements of national heroes and revolutionary leaders, foremost among them Mao Zedong.
Under the law, it is prohibited to refute the official version of the history of the revolution, while internet platforms and media outlets are required to immediately remove any such content and report violators to the police.
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