Kylian Mbappé has apologised for joking about a meme that superimposes his face on a figure resembling Mao Zedong, after the remark sparked a wave of anger in China, prompted brands to cut ties with him and led China Media Group to suspend broadcasts of La Liga matches.
On Monday night, when the French striker was attending the Ballon d'Or ceremony in London, fans found a clip of him joking about the meme that makes him “laugh the most”. The meme superimposes his face on a figure resembling Mao, described by the BBC as a “Chinese dictator”. Mao, who founded the People's Republic of China and died in 1976, remains a near-sacred figure in the country.
China Media Group, the parent of state broadcaster CCTV, suspended its La Liga broadcasts, and brands including dairy company Mengniu, an official sponsor of the Fifa World Cup, cut ties with the player. A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said: "Words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will naturally be met with joint opposition from all sectors of Chinese society."
Mbappé said he was "sincerely sorry" for his "ill-judged" comment. His club, Real Madrid, and the Spanish league also apologised. Beijing later confirmed it was taking the apology "seriously". China Media Group has not said whether broadcasts will resume.
On the Chinese internet, many did not know exactly what Mbappé had said. China's censorship system cuts its 1.4 billion people off from the global internet, and screenshots of the meme and interview were shared with the word “dictator” and Mbappé's face blurred out. References were made to “the person on the 100 yuan note” and “the teacher”, a title Mao once used for himself. Anger remained. “An apology is the least he should do, but I don't forgive him. I support a ban on him,” read a top comment on Weibo. Another said: “Do you know who you hurt? He is the spiritual pillar of the Chinese people.”
Reactions outside China were markedly different. Under Mbappé's statement on X, a highly liked comment in Chinese said: “You don't need to apologise, you are not wrong.” Another Chinese user wrote: “The ones who should apologise are the CCP; they kidnapped the Chinese people and brainwashed them.” Some users expressed puzzlement, with one comment under Real Madrid's apology on Instagram saying it seemed people weren't allowed to speak out against their leaders and asking whether they expect the whole world to think the same way they do, calling that ridiculous.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- China is a huge market for football, and Mbappé is one of its biggest stars, so the commercial response from brands and state media was swift.
- The episode shows how quickly foreign figures can face consequences in China without the details of the controversy being widely visible inside the country.
- Censorship left many Chinese users angry without knowing exactly what Mbappé had said, deepening the divide between Chinese and international reactions.
Background
Mao Zedong led the Chinese Communist Party to victory in the civil war and founded the People's Republic of China, ruling until his death in 1976. He remains a revered figure in China, where it is illegal to "insult" or "slander" Communist Party martyrs and war heroes. The party's verdict on Mao is that his achievements outweigh his mistakes, while outside China he is often seen as both a revolutionary and a dictator.
Key Perspectives
Chinese foreign ministry: said "Words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will naturally be met with joint opposition from all sectors of Chinese society."
Chinese social media users: a top Weibo comment said "An apology is the least he should do, but I don't forgive him. I support a ban on him," while another wrote "Do you know who you hurt? He is the spiritual pillar of the Chinese people."
Diaspora users: a highly liked comment under Mbappé's X statement said "You don't need to apologise, you are not wrong," and another wrote "The ones who should apologise are the CCP; they kidnapped the Chinese people and brainwashed them."
International users: a top comment under Real Madrid's apology on Instagram said people "aren't allowed to speak out against their leaders" and called the expectation that the rest of the world thinks the same way "ridiculous."
What to Watch
- Whether China Media Group resumes La Liga broadcasts or keeps the suspension in place.
- Whether Mbappé's Chinese commercial partners return or sever ties permanently.
- Whether Beijing takes further action beyond saying it takes the apology "seriously".
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 11 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedMbappé apologised after his joke about a meme resembling Mao triggered a backlash in China.BBC News: “It wasn't long before Mbappé, one of the biggest football stars in the world, said he was "sincerely sorry" for his "ill-judged" comment.”
- Partly supportedBrands cut ties with Mbappé and China Media Group suspended La Liga broadcasts in the wake of the controversy.BBC News: “The controversy spread like wildfire as Chinese brands cut him off one by one and China Media Group, the parent group of state broadcaster CCTV, suspended broadcasts of La Liga matches.”
- SupportedOn Monday night, Mbappé was attending the Ballon d'Or ceremony in London when fans found a clip of him joking about the meme that made him laugh the most.BBC News: “On Monday night, as Kylian Mbappé was attending the Ballon d'Or ceremony in London, he was also becoming the centre of a huge controversy on Chinese social media. Football fans had stumbled upon a clip of him joking about the meme that makes him "laugh the most"”
- SupportedThe meme superimposed Mbappé's face on a figure resembling Mao, whom the BBC described as a “Chinese dictator”.BBC News: “the meme that makes him "laugh the most" - where his face is superimposed on a "Chinese dictator" resembling Mao Zedong”
- SupportedA Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said, “Words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will naturally be met with joint opposition from all sectors of Chinese society.”BBC News: “A foreign ministry spokesperson said: "Words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will naturally be met with joint opposition from all sectors of Chinese society."”
- SupportedMbappé said he was “sincerely sorry” for his “ill-judged” comment.BBC News: “Mbappé, one of the biggest football stars in the world, said he was "sincerely sorry" for his "ill-judged" comment .”
- SupportedReal Madrid and La Liga also issued apologies, and Beijing later said it was taking Mbappé's apology “seriously”.BBC News: “His club, Real Madrid, and the Spanish league La Liga, also issued apologies. China is a huge market for the world's most popular sport. Beijing later confirmed it was taking the footballer's apology "seriously".”
- SupportedChina Media Group had not said whether La Liga broadcasts would resume.BBC News: “China Media Group has yet to say whether broadcasts will resume.”
- SupportedMengniu, an official Fifa World Cup sponsor, cut ties with Mbappé.BBC News: “Dairy company Mengniu, an official sponsor of the Fifa World Cup, cut ties with the footballer after the backlash”
- SupportedA top Weibo comment said, “An apology is the least he should do, but I don't forgive him. I support a ban on him.”BBC News: “"An apology is the least he should do, but I don't forgive him. I support a ban on him," read a top comment on Weibo.”
- SupportedA Weibo comment said, “Do you know who you hurt? He is the spiritual pillar of the Chinese people.”BBC News: “"Do you know who you hurt? He is the spiritual pillar of the Chinese people," read one Weibo comment liked by more than 700 users.”
- SupportedAn Instagram comment under Real Madrid's apology expressed puzzlement about whether people were allowed to criticise their leaders and whether they expected the whole world to think the same way.BBC News: “"It's honestly hard to understand... It seems like people aren't allowed to speak out against their leaders. And they expect the whole world to think the same way they do? That's ridiculous," read a top comment under Real Madrid's apology on Instagram.”