‘Not accepted. Not forgiven!!’ : French superstar’s ‘dictator Mao’ meme ignites fury in China

Beijing: French soccer superstar Kylian Mbappé has a legion of fans in China. His face is plastered around subway stations, on roadside billboards and on buses, spruiking energy drinks and dairy products.

Or at least it was, until the Real Madrid striker incurred the wrath of Chinese nationalism.

At least three Chinese companies have cut advertising ties with him, while Spain’s professional soccer league, LaLiga, is in damage control to protect a broadcast deal in China estimated to be worth more than $160 million a year.

Mbappé’s offence? He found amusing a viral meme that compared him to “some guy — I think he’s a Chinese dictator”.

“That really makes me laugh, I use it with my friends all the time,” he said in an interview with French online talk show The Bridge, which has since been taken down.

The video cut to an image of the meme showing Mbappé’s face superimposed on the body of Mao Zedong.

The meme is one of many depicting Mbappé as a dictator, with others also showing him as North Korea’s Kim Jong-un, Joseph Stalin and Fidel Castro — a joking reference to the power he wields inside Real Madrid and his apparent influence over coaches and decision-making.

Mbappé didn’t reference China’s former leader by name and has since publicly apologised, releasing a statement that described his comment as “ill-judged”.

“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 said on Tuesday.

Nationalistic backlash

The backlash on Chinese social media has been furious. Nationalistic citizens took offence to their perceived mockery of the country’s founding father, and some called for a boycott of brands that had partnerships with the star and Real Madrid.

“How is this scumbag even allowed to have an account? How dare he insult the great man on our banknotes,” one user wrote on Weibo, China’s biggest microblogging site, where Mbappé’s account has been suspended.

“Hurry up and terminate your contract with Real Madrid, or we’ll sell your stock share! Stop playing dead!!!,” another user wrote on the account of Chinese electronics giant Hisense.

The furore is yet another example of how China can leverage its economic heft and lucrative commercial partnerships to cower companies and people into steering clear from critical political commentary, however slight.

In 2019, China banned the broadcasting of NBA games after then-Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey tweeted support for anti-government protesters in Hong Kong. It took six years before the NBA was invited back to hold exhibition matches in Macau in 2025.

Mao led the Chinese Communist Party in its civil war victory and founded the People’s Republic of China in 1949, ruling as its totalitarian leader until his death in 1976. He remains a revered figure by many in China, particularly in rural areas.

However, discussion of his legacy is taboo in China, particularly around the disastrous impact of his signature policies. The Great Leap Forward triggered famines that killed millions of people, while the Cultural Revolution unleashed waves of violence and persecution against those he denounced as class enemies.

The video clip with Mbappé was quickly censored by Chinese social media platforms, leaving many people with little clarity about what the soccer star had said that was deemed offensive.

Dongqiudi, the Chinese football news platform, which was one of the first to draw attention to his comments on Monday, refused to show them.

“Because his comments were offensive to China and the Chinese people, we cannot translate them,” it said in a post.

Similarly, China’s state run media published editorials where they danced around the remarks while denouncing them.

“What did he say? Many Chinese would rather not repeat it,” the Global Times said. “The lesson is clear: respect is not optional; one doesn’t get to profit from China while disrespecting it. Not a chance.”

A flurry of apologies

By the time Mbappé had apologised, drinks company Dongpeng, dairy giant Mengniu and cheese maker Milkground had announced they had severed promotional deals with soccer star. In similarly worded statements on Tuesday, the companies said they were opposed to “any words and actions that hurt national sentiment”.

Meanwhile, China’s state television suspended broadcasts of all LaLiga matches and removed all advertisements involving Mbappé.

The Chinese Football Association demanded an apology from Real Madrid, and said, “internationally renowned athletes, in particular, should strictly adhere to ethical standards, speak rationally and cherish their public influence”.

LaLiga President Javier Tebas soon distanced the league from Mbappé’s remarks, and said he had met with China’s ambassador in Spain to “seek solutions that ​allow us to overcome this episode”.

“We cannot allow individual actions to damage this relationship, nor can we let more than 20 clubs in our professional competitions and millions of Chinese fans be adversely affected as a result,” he posted on X, alongside an apology.

But, for some fans, the contrition is not enough. “Not accepted. Not forgiven!!“, one user wrote on Weibo.

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Lisa Visentin is the North Asia correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age based in Beijing. She was previously a federal political correspondent based in Canberra.Connect via X or email.