French football star Kylian Mbappé has apologised for remarks apparently referring to China’s founding leader Mao Zedong as a dictator after facing a backlash and losing endorsement deals with three Chinese companies.
“My comment was ill-judged, and I now understand that it hurt many people in China and in Chinese communities around the world,” Mbappé said in a statement on Tuesday.
“I apologise to everyone my words have upset. This was absolutely not my intention. I have deep respect for the Chinese people and their history, and I am sincerely sorry,” he added.
Chinese beverage maker Dongpeng, dairy giant Mengniu and cheese producer Milkground announced on Tuesday that they were ending their agreements with the footballer, saying they opposed “any words and actions that hurt national sentiment.”
The companies did not specify the reason for their decisions, but their announcements came after a video clip of Mbappé discussing his favourite meme circulated on social media.
In the clip, Mbappé refers to a video featuring a man he believes was a Chinese dictator. The video then shows an edited image of the footballer's face on the body of Mao Zedong wearing a blue suit.
Football fans frequently use dictator-themed memes to joke about Mbappé's influence over his teammates and the teams he plays for. Images depicting him as Mao and other authoritarian leaders have circulated widely online.
Mao led the Chinese Communist Party during its early years, won the civil war against the Nationalist Party and founded the People's Republic of China. While he remains revered by many in the country, his legacy also includes authoritarian rule and policies such as the Great Leap Forward, which contributed to a famine that killed an estimated 30 million people.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said that remarks and actions hurting the feelings of the Chinese people would naturally face opposition across Chinese society.
Social media platform RedNote also criticised the remarks, saying its content partnership with Mbappé had ended on December 31, 2024, and that it would remove related promotional materials. His account on the platform was barred from accepting new followers on Tuesday.
Mbappé has appeared in numerous Chinese advertising campaigns for products ranging from electrolyte drinks to dairy products. In one Dongpeng advertisement, he delivers a slogan in Chinese, while a Mengniu commercial features him alongside Argentine football star Lionel Messi.
The controversy also gained traction on Chinese social media, where hashtags related to the termination of the brand partnerships topped Weibo's trending list. Calls to boycott Mbappé also trended, with some users criticising his remarks and urging him not to visit China.