Real Madrid apologise to China over Mbappe comments.
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Real Madrid apologised to China on Wednesday for Kylian Mbappe’s comments poking fun at Mao Zedong, after the star striker’s remarks sparked a social media storm and saw Spanish football yanked off state TV.
Mocking former leader Mao — blamed by historians for millions of deaths — is taboo in China, and Mbappe’s remarks saw him become the latest foreign sports figure to anger Beijing.
In a clip of a video interview with French show “The Bridge” — since taken down — Mbappe talked about being amused by an internet meme of his face photoshopped onto “some guy, think he’s a Chinese dictator”, an apparent reference to Mao. Real Madrid “wishes to express its apologies to the Chinese people for any offence caused by the recent remarks of our player Kylian Mbappe”, the club said in a statement. “The club joins in the public apology issued by Kylian Mbappe, in which the player himself expressed his regret for his words and reiterated his respect for the Chinese people,” the 15-time European champions said. The statement came a day after Mbappe issued his own apology, in French, Chinese and English, saying: “My comment was ill-judged and I now understand that it hurt many people in China and in Chinese communities around the world.” Foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun told a regular briefing on Wednesday: “We take seriously the apology the individual concerned has made.” La Liga, which saw the broadcast of its matches suspended in China, said Tuesday it “deeply regrets the offence that Kylian Mbappe’s recent comments have caused among Chinese fans”.
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