Mbappé's joke about Mao, China takes away his sponsors and TV cancels La Liga

Kylian Mbappé has been banned from two major Chinese brands after a video circulated online in which the French football superstar appeared to joke about a viral photo montage depicting him with the face of former Chinese leader Mao Zedong. The Guardian reports it.

The controversy arose from an interview with MadridXtra in which, speaking about his favorite satirical image, the Frenchman said: "The one that made me laugh the most is the one where they put my face on a Chinese dictator. I often use it with my friends." Mbappé did not explicitly mention Mao, but the reference was associated with the 'meme' that went viral on social media.

In China, jokes about Mao, the country's founding leader who died in 1976, are considered disrespectful and remain a social taboo. “Our company firmly opposes and adopts a zero-tolerance policy towards any behavior that offends national sentiments,” drinks giant Dongpeng said in a statement, adding that “with immediate effect we terminate all collaboration with Kylian Mbappé.”

During this year's World Cup, commercials regularly aired in China showing AI-generated images of the 27-year-old France captain drinking a Dongpeng sports drink. Chinese groups Mengniu and Mikground have also announced the end of commercial relations with the Los Blancos star.

"Hurt the feelings" of the Chinese people will meet "unanimous rejection" after Mbappé's statements on Mao, Beijing says. "We have read the news on this matter. Words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will naturally meet with unanimous rejection from all sectors of Chinese society," Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said.

The consequences of the controversy also affect Spanish football. State television CCTV has suspended broadcasts of the Spanish La Liga and removed advertisements and videos linked to the Real Madrid striker.