Mbappe loses two major Chinese sponsors over Mao Zedong comment

Two of China's largest consumer brands terminated their partnerships with Kylian Mbappe on Tuesday following the viral spread of a video in which the footballer made a joke about former Chinese leader Mao Zedong.

Dongpeng Beverage, a major sports drink company, stated in a release that it opposes any behavior that offends national sentiments. The company announced that it is ending all cooperation with the 27-year-old France captain immediately. Mengniu, the country's largest dairy producer, issued a similar statement. It said it is cutting ties with the Real Madrid forward and maintains a zero-tolerance policy toward words or actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people.

The backlash began when a video emerged online showing Mbappe discussing internet memes. He identified his favorite meme as one where his face was digitally placed onto the image of what he described as a Chinese dictator. This appeared to reference a popular image of Mbappe superimposed on a photo of Mao, who died in 1976. In China, jokes about the founding leader are considered a social taboo and a sign of disrespect.

The topic of Dongpeng ending its relationship with Mbappe became the top trending item on Weibo, a major Chinese social media platform. One user described the remarks as extremely serious and unacceptable, saying they crossed a red line. Other users urged the beverage company to remove the player's image from its energy drink bottles.

Dongqiudi, a prominent online football outlet in China, criticized the comments in a statement on Monday evening. The publication said the remarks were offensive to China and the Chinese people and that they hurt the feelings of local football fans. Until this incident, Mbappe was immensely popular in China. He has millions of followers on social media and is known by the nickname Guigui, which translates to turtle. This moniker stems from a meme depicting him as a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles character.

Mbappe had previously addressed a similar meme in September during an interview with the French sports newspaper L'Equipe. The image in that instance depicted him as a military dictator. He noted that while some people view the comparisons as fun, others find them less funny due to the historical damage caused by such figures. He stated that he does not think he has ever murdered others or brought misery to millions of people.

The controversy in China arrived one day after Mbappe lost the Ballon d'Or award to Harry Kane. The award is considered the most prestigious individual honor in football. Previous global sports figures have also faced consequences in China for commenting on sensitive political topics.

In 2023, former NBA player Dwight Howard referred to Taiwan as a country while appearing in a video with the island's vice president and current president, William Lai Ching-te. This caused anger on Chinese social media. In 2019, Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey posted a tweet supporting Hong Kong protests. China subsequently suspended sponsorship deals with the NBA and removed games from Chinese television for a year.