Three Chinese brands on Tuesday cut ties with France national football team captain and Real Madrid of Spain striker, Kylian Mbappe, over comment about a late founding leader of Chinese, Mao Zedong.
The three Chinese brands, Mengniu Dairy Company; cheese making company, Milkground Food Tech; and Dongpeng Beverage Group, in separate statements announced their contract termination with him.
Dongpeng Beverage said, “Our company firmly opposes and maintains a zero-tolerance stance toward any actions that hurt the national sentiments of the people. Effective immediately, we are terminating all cooperation with Kylian Mbappé.”
Mengniu noted that its dissociation with Mbappé was because it “firmly opposes and has zero tolerance for any words or actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people.”
Also, Milkground said it ended their links with Mbappé, because it opposed and had zero tolerance for words or actions hurting the feelings of the Chinese people.
The action by the companies followed a viral video on X showing Mbappé being interviewed ahead of an appearance on the French online talk show “The Bridge.”
Mbappé was asked in the clip about his favourite meme of himself, to which he replied it was “a video someone made of a guy… I think he was a Chinese dictator,” after which the video showed an altered image of Mbappé’s face on the blue-suited body of Mr Zedong.
Mbappé’s comments enraged people in China, as they accused him of insulting a country that has been a lucrative source of income for him.
China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Guo Jiakun, at a briefing on Tuesday, in Beijing, said, “Words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will naturally be met with a collective boycott by all sectors of Chinese society.”
A hashtag #MbappeStillOwesAnApology, also started gaining traction on social media platform Sina Weibo over the remarks the Chinese said was offensive.
A state television in China was said to have also halted broadcasts of matches and events involving LaLiga, and removed advertisements involving Mbappe.
In China, satire or jokes about Mr Zedong, who ruled from 1949 until his death in 1976, are considered disrespectful and a social taboo.
The 27-year-old Mbappe in a statement apologised for his comment, saying, “During a recent interview, I reacted to an image of myself. 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. This was absolutely not my intention. I have deep respect for the Chinese people and their history, and I am sincerely sorry.”