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Mbappé apologizes over Mao remark as backlash reaches Spanish football

The French report says sponsors have dropped the Real Madrid forward and broadcasts of Spain's league have been suspended in China.

Channel: TF1 INFO ·

FranceStory of October 29, 2026Trari Newsroom

Why this story? One of TF1 INFO's most watched videos since yesterday, with 433,416 views.

TF1 INFO: The news division of TF1, a private French television channel owned by the Bouygues group. 1.8M subscribers and 1.9B views.

Kylian Mbappé présente ses excuses après la polémique en Chine｜TF1 INFO

Kylian Mbappé has apologized for remarks about Mao Zedong after a backlash in China spread from products bearing his image to broadcasts of Spanish football, according to France's TF1 INFO.

The report says the Real Madrid forward lost three sponsors and that broadcasts of Spain's top-flight league were suspended in China. Spanish football officials also issued apologies, it reports.

The controversy began when Mbappé was asked about a humorous edited video depicting him. In the footage replayed in the report, he describes the figure as someone he believes is a Chinese dictator. The reference to Mao, the founding leader of the People's Republic of China, prompted objections and boycott calls.

Mbappé subsequently said he was sincerely sorry, described his remarks as clumsy and apologized to those his words had hurt, according to the report.

Correspondent Louise Malnoy shows the commercial response in Beijing: bottles bearing the player's image being removed from a supermarket, followed by the emptied shelf. Two people interviewed in the street condemn his remarks, with one calling for a boycott. Their comments illustrate the objections without establishing how widely those views are shared.

The segment also places Mao's continuing status in China alongside historians' assessments of his regime. Sports economist Virgile Caillet then examines the economic consequences for Mbappé and the brands associated with him.

The video's title, "Kylian Mbappé présente ses excuses après la polémique en Chine｜TF1 INFO," means "Kylian Mbappé apologizes after controversy in China." Its account follows the consequences beyond the player's apology to his sponsors and the league in which he plays.

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