Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe dumped by Chinese brands after Mao Zedong video controversy

Chinese drinks giant Dongpeng and dairy producer Mengniu announced on Tuesday that they were ending their partnerships with the France captain, 27, following the controversy.

Jokes about Mao, who founded the People's Republic of China and died in 1976, remain a sensitive subject in the country.

Dongpeng confirmed its decision in a statement, saying: "Our company firmly opposes and has a zero-tolerance policy towards any behaviour that offends national sentiments."

It added: "With immediate effect we are terminating all cooperation with Kylian Mbappe."

Mengniu also announced an immediate end to its relationship with the footballer, who had enjoyed considerable popularity among Chinese fans.

"With immediate effect our company is terminating all cooperation with Kylian Mbappe," the company said.

"Mengniu firmly opposes and has a zero-tolerance policy towards any words or actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people," it added.

The controversy followed the circulation of a video in which Mbappe reportedly described an internet meme featuring his face superimposed on that of a Chinese dictator as the funniest meme he had seen. The apparent reference was to an image showing the striker alongside Mao.

The incident quickly gained attention on Chinese social media, with the termination of Dongpeng's partnership becoming the leading topic on Weibo. Some users demanded that the company remove Mbappe's image from its energy drink bottles.

Chinese football outlet Dongqiudi also criticised the remarks, saying they were offensive to China and its people and had hurt the feelings of football supporters.

Mbappe had previously addressed memes comparing him to historical dictators in an interview with French sports newspaper L'Equipe in September.

"There's a part of it that's funny. You can tell that, for some people, it's all in good fun," he said.

However, he also expressed concern about comparisons with figures responsible for mass suffering.

"Being compared to individuals who murder others, or who have brought misery to millions upon millions of people - well, I don't think I've ever done anything like that in my life," Mbappe added.

The loss of the two sponsorship deals is another example of the risks international sports stars face when their comments touch on politically sensitive issues in China.

Former NBA player Dwight Howard sparked criticism in 2023 after referring to Taiwan as a country in a video featuring the island's president, Lai Ching-te. Beijing claims Taiwan as part of its territory.

In 2019, a tweet by Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey supporting pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong led to a major dispute between the NBA and China, with Chinese broadcasters suspending coverage of league games for a year.