French striker Kylian Mbappé issued a public statement on the 27th, apologizing for the termination of his contracts with two major Chinese food manufacturers over inappropriate comments made by the Real Madrid player.
It all started when Mbappé made a joke mocking former Chinese leader Mao Zedong in a video that went viral online. This remark made many people in China uncomfortable, and Dongpeng Beverage and Meng Dairy announced that they ``resolutely oppose any act that offends public sentiment and are terminating our cooperative relationship.'' In addition, Chinese soccer media outlet ``Yuqiu Di'' strongly protested, saying, ``Mbappe's comments are an insult to China and the Chinese people.''
On the same day, Mbappe posted an apology in three languages: French, Chinese, and English on his official SNS. ``I deeply understand that when I made a comment using my photo in a recent interview, my comments were inappropriate and hurt many Chinese people and the Chinese community,'' he said.``I apologize to everyone who was offended.I have deep respect for the Chinese people and history.''
On the same day, La Liga also released an official statement, saying it "deeply regrets" the offense Mbappe's comments caused to Chinese fans, and said that his comments were his personal views and did not represent La Liga. Furthermore, they announced that they would begin an awareness and communication protocol to prevent recurrence.
This series of events has once again highlighted the risk that Mbappé's personal actions are directly linked to his international commercial relationships. Real Madrid and La Liga are likely to tighten guidelines regarding player comments in the future. Although Mbappé himself has expressed his apologies, he will be required to be cautious in his words and actions in his future activities.