Mbappé Apologizes for Mao Remark as Chinese Sponsors Exit
The Facts
- Kylian Mbappé apologized Tuesday in French, Chinese and English for comments about Mao Zedong, calling his remark "ill-judged" and saying it hurt many people in China and Chinese communities worldwide. He added that causing offense was not his intention.
- Beverage maker Dongpeng, dairy producer Mengniu and cheese company Milkground said Tuesday they were ending their sponsorship deals with the Real Madrid forward, with each citing opposition to words or actions that hurt Chinese national sentiment.
- Mao founded the People's Republic of China in 1949, ending decades of civil war and foreign intervention, before his Great Leap Forward industrialization drive led to a famine that killed tens of millions.
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The Spin
Pro-China narrative
Mao Zedong lifted farmers and workers up, united China and kept Western colonizers from carving up the country, protecting the foundation of China's prosperity today. Mao also backed Algeria's struggle against French colonial rule, so a star like Mbappé with Algerian roots owes gratitude to the historic leader, not a cheap joke. No other individual in modern history has been more unfairly demonized by the West.
Pro-establishment narrative
Mbappé and his team were naive to think a quick apology would resolve this. China's ultra-nationalists consider any slight against Mao as an unforgivable insult, and neither groveling nor commercial appeasement will win back their support or guarantee his sponsors return. By bowing to pressure for a paycheck, he has alienated those who value free expression and exposed his own cowardice.
