Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappé (27) has lost several sponsorship deals from China after a video circulated on social media, in which the France captain joked about a meme linking him with former China’s former Chairman, Mao Zedong, AFP reports. In said video, published by TheBridge, Mbappé tells that the funniest meme he had seen of him is the one where his face is photoshopped onto Mao Zedong’s image. “I think he’s a Chinese dictator“, Mbappé could be heard saying in the video. Mbappé’s comments did not go well at all in China.

Energy drink company Dongpeng and dairy producer Meigniu have both announced having terminated their sponsorship deals with Mbappé, implying that his “behaviour offends national sentiment“. “Mengniu has a zero-tolerance policy towards any words or actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people,” Meigniu added in their press release. AFP reports that Mbappé’s remarks also angered the country’s higher-ups. China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Giu Jiakun reacted on Tuesday that “Any statement or action that hurts the feelings of the Chinese people naturally meets with widespread rejection from the whole of Chinese society.”

On Monday, Mbappé lost out to Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane in the race for the 2025-2026 Men’s Ballon d’Or.