Kylian Mbappe issues grovelling apology after sparking fury in China with 'dictator' Mao comment: Spain's LaLiga also 'sorry' after state TV 'threatens to axe all coverage'

Kylian Mbappe has been dropped by Chinese brands while state TV stations have suspended all LaLiga broadcasts following a joke about Mao Zedong.

A video circulated online in which the French Real Madrid superstar apparently mocked the former Chinese Communist Party leader.

In the footage, he said the funniest internet meme he had seen was of his face photo-shopped onto that of 'some guy – I think he's a Chinese dictator'.

Mbappe has apologised for the 'ill-judged' joke, saying he has 'deep respect' for China and its history.

Meanwhile LaLiga president Javier Medrano has also been forced to weigh in and apologise to China, describing Mbappe's comments as 'offensive' and adding that the Spanish league is 'taking measures... to overcome this situation'.

In China, jokes about Mao – the country's founding leader who died in 1976 – are considered disrespectful and remain a social taboo.

Mbappe had brand deals with the drinks giant Dongpeng and China's largest dairy producer Mengniu, who have now cut ties with the 27-year-old.

Adverts showing AI-generated images of the France captain drinking a Dongpeng sports drink were regularly shown in China during this year's World Cup.

Chinese brands have dropped French football star Kylian Mbappe after he 'joked' about former leader Mao Zedong

In China, jokes about Mao – the country's founding leader who died in 1976 – are considered disrespectful and remain a social taboo

The meme that football fans had created photoshopping Mbappe's face onto Mao, which he references in the video

Those firms have now dropped Mbappe after accusing him of offending the nation.

China Media Group, the state broadcaster, has also reportedly stopped broadcasting LaLiga matches and advertisements involving Mbappe, citing the Frenchman's 'seriously negative conduct' concerning China, according to EFE.

Dongpeng said in a statement: 'Our company firmly opposes and has a zero-tolerance policy towards any behaviour that offends national sentiments.'

The drinks giant added that 'with immediate effect we are terminating all co-operation with Kylian Mbappe'.

Mengniu said in a statement: 'With immediate effect our company is terminating all co-operation with Kylian Mbappe.

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

Until this incident, Mbappe was hugely popular among Chinese fans with millions of followers on social media.

Mbappe is fondly nicknamed 'Guigui', the Chinese translation of 'Turtle', due to his perceived similarity to one of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

A bus featuring Mbappe for Dongpeng's Bushuila electrolyte drink is seen on a street in Shanghai

Mengniu milk products are seen on a shelf at a store in Beijing. The brand has dropped Mbappe after his 'joke' about Mao

Mbappe seen on bottles of one of Dongpeng's electrolyte drinks

The centre-forward's comments in the video were an apparent reference to a meme of Mbappe superimposed on an image of Mao, one of several using the footballer's face and other historical figures.

In a statement on Tuesday, Mbappe said: '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. I am sincerely sorry.'

LaLiga president Mr Medrano said: 'From LaLiga, we deeply regret the statements made by Kylian Mbappe that have caused discomfort and offense in China.

'We understand the harm caused and, on behalf of LaLiga I wish to convey our sincere apologies to the Chinese people.

'For many years, we have built a relationship of respect, trust and co-operation with China, its authorities, its sports institutions, its audiovisual operators, and millions of fans of Spanish football.

'We cannot allow an individual action to tarnish that relationship or harm the more than 20 clubs in our professional competitions and millions of Chinese fans.

'We are taking the measures within our reach and working directly with our partners and interlocutors in China to overcome this situation.

'Our commitment to China, its people, and its institutions is steadfast. A relationship built over so many years cannot be damaged by a single episode.'

Four topics related to Mbappe were still among the top ten trending searches on China's social media platform Weibo on Tuesday morning.

Some users called for China to 'blacklist' Mbappe and reduce his commercial value to zero. These comments received hundreds of likes.

Fans have been creating memes superimposing Mbappe's face on images of military and political leaders to suggest that he has the power to call the shots at the teams he plays for.

In an interview with L'Equipe last month, Mbappe said that while some aspects of the meme trend were harmless fun, the viral ones depicting him as a dictator showed 'a lack of political and human awareness'.

When asked about the incident, a spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry said that words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people 'will naturally be met with joint opposition from all sectors of Chinese society'.

Mbappe has now apologised for the offence caused by his joke, which the France star admitted was 'ill-judged'

'Dongpeng Beverage ends cooperation with Mbappe' has been the top-trending topic on Chinese social media site Weibo.

One Weibo user said that the 'extremely serious wrong remarks... crossed the red line. They are completely unacceptable'.

Others urged Dongpeng to remove Mbappe's image from their energy drink bottles.

Dongqiudi, one of China's biggest online football outlets, said on Monday evening that Mbappe's remarks were 'offensive to China and the Chinese people' and 'have hurt the feelings of Chinese football fans and the Chinese people'.

Mbappe in September addressed a previous meme depicting him as a military dictator, in an interview with French sports newspaper L'Equipe.

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

'But there is another part that's a bit less funny because of the damage such people have caused throughout history.'

The 27-year-old added: '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.'

The furore in China came a day after Mbappe lost out to Harry Kane for the Ballon d'Or, the most prestigious individual award in football.

Global sports stars who have commented on sensitive topics such as Taiwan, Tibet and Hong Kong have previously caused controversy in China and been dumped by sponsors there.

Former NBA player Dwight Howard referred to Taiwan as a country in 2023 as he appeared in a video with the island's vice president and current president Lai Ching-te, sparking fury on Chinese social media.

Beijing claims Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to use force to bring it under its control.

Houston Rockets general manager Daryl Morey posted a tweet in 2019 supporting Hong Kong protests, leading to China suspending sponsorship deals with the NBA and pulling games off Chinese television for a year.

Chinese media outlets reacted with fury to Mbappe's comments on Tuesday.

'A remark about an internet meme has triggered a backlash among his Chinese fans, threatened his lucrative commercial relationships and offered a sharp reminder of the limits of celebrity influence,' state media outlet China Daily said.

'What did he say? Many Chinese would rather not repeat it,' the state-backed Global Times said.

'The message from Chinese consumers is clear: Respect is not optional; one doesn't get to profit from China while disrespecting it. Not a chance.'