At least three Chinese companies have ended their agreements with Kylian Mbappé after the French soccer star made comments apparently referring to Mao Zedong, the founding leader of Communist China, as a dictator.
Dongpeng, a beverage maker, dairy giant Mengniu and cheese maker Milkground all announced the terminations on Tuesday.
Each company issued a similarly worded statement, saying they oppose “any words and actions that hurt national sentiment.”
The statements came after a clip circulated on X that appeared to show Mbappé being interviewed ahead of an appearance on the French online talk show “The Bridge”
In the video, Mbappé is asked about his favorite meme of himself.
The soccer star replies that it was “a video someone made of a guy ... I think he was a Chinese dictator” before the video shows an altered image depicting Mbappé's face on the blue-suited body of Mao Zedong.
The companies did not specify what prompted their decisions.
Mbappé's face has appeared in ads across China, from subway stations to elevators.
He has featured in Chinese advertising campaigns for products ranging from electrolyte drinks to milk and cheese.
In one commercial for Dongpeng, Mbappé delivers a slogan in Chinese.
In an ad for Mengniu, he appears alongside Argentine soccer star Lionel Messi.
Soccer fans online jokingly call the star a dictator, saying he is said to overshadow many of his teammates and even the teams he plays on, and memes showing him as Mao or other autocratic leaders are widely circulated.
RedNote, a social media platform, joined the criticism in a separate statement.
The company said it had a content partnership with Mbappé that ended on Dec. 31, 2024, and that it would “remove related promotional materials.” It likewise expressed opposition to “any conduct that hurts national sentiment.”
On Chinese social media, there were already several comments criticizing the soccer star.
The hashtags “Dongpeng ends partnership with Mbappé” and “Several brands end partnerships with Mbappé” topped Weibo's trending list.
“Football fans boycott Mbappé” was also trending, with some users expressing anger at his remarks or telling him not to come to China.
The Associated Press was immediately unable to reach Mbappé's representatives for comment.
Associated Press video producer Olivia Zhang contributed to this report from Beijing.