La Liga moves to repair China ties after Mbappe row

LONDON: France captain Kylian Mbappe apologised to China on Tuesday after a fierce backlash over his comments referring to late Chinese leader Mao Zedong as a dictator, underscoring how swiftly global celebrities can come unstuck.

In a video on a French podcast that has since been taken down, Mbappe is heard discussing a funny meme where his face had been photoshopped onto that of "some guy — I think he's a Chinese dictator."

"During a recent interview, I reacted to an image of myself," Real Madrid forward Mbappe said in a statement.

"My comment was ill-judged, and I now understand that it hurt many people in China and in Chinese communities around the world.

"I apologise to everyone my words have upset," added Mbappe, who has ties with firms including Swiss sportswear brand On Holding, hotel chain Accor and Lego.

"This was absolutely not my intention."

The backlash highlighted the risks for athletes and brands in the lucrative China market, where satire about Mao, modern China's founding leader who ruled the country from 1949 until he died in 1976, remains a social taboo.

La Liga president Javier Tebas said he met the Chinese ambassador in Spain to resolve the fallout.

"Our commitment is to keep working together so that an individual episode does not harm the important advances achieved nor affect the millions of Chinese fans who follow our competitions," Tebas said in a statement posted to social media.

"China is and will continue to be a strategic partner for La Liga."

Brands including dairy companies Mengniu and Shanghai Milkground Food Tech, as well as Eastroc Beverage, said they were ceasing all cooperation with Mbappe effective immediately.

The companies said they "firmly oppose and have zero tolerance for any words or actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people."

State television has stopped broadcasting matches and programmes involving La Liga and Mbappe, while all advertisements featuring the player have been taken down, state-backed news outlet The Paper reported on Tuesday.

"Mbappe's team knew, or should have known, what the true cost of Chinese brand endorsements was all about," said Terrence Burns, sports sponsorship expert and CEO of the T. Burns Sports Group.

Swiss-based On Holding, which signed Mbappe in September after he had spent two decades at US rival Nike, welcomed his apology and said it had "deep respect" for China.

Chinese state media outlet China Daily said Mbappe's remark had "triggered a backlash among his Chinese fans, threatened his lucrative commercial relationships and offered a sharp reminder of the limits of celebrity influence."

"What did he say? Many Chinese would rather not repeat it," the state-backed Global Times added.

"The message from Chinese consumers is clear: Respect is not optional; one doesn't get to profit from China while disrespecting it. Not a chance."

On Chinese social media platform Weibo, one user wrote about the apology: "Not accepted. Not forgiven!!".

State broadcaster CCTV struck a more conciliatory tone, saying it would listen to what Mbappe had to say after his apology and "even more importantly" watch what he does.