Kylian Mbappe lost millions and sparked a boycott in China by calling Mao Zedong a "dictator". The Real Madrid forward found himself in an international scandal after a mistake on a talk show in which he called Mao Zedong a "Chinese dictator". The situation was exacerbated by an Internet meme that crossed the actor's appearance with a famous portrait of the Chinese leader. The combination of the photos caused a stir: fans burned Mbappe's shirts and damaged posters, and the Chinese Foreign Ministry stated that his words hurt the feelings of the entire nation. The phrase and the photo collage hurt the player and La Liga in his pocket. Mbappe lost three Chinese sponsors (Manganio, Dongfeng, Milkground), and lost $8 million in annual revenue. The league's broadcasting contracts worth more than 100 million dollars were also under threat of boycott. Chinese platforms Dongqiudi and RedNote immediately removed references to the soccer player. Despite the apologies from Mbappe and Real Madrid, the strict boycott in China continues. t. me.

Kylian Mbappe lost millions and sparked a boycott in China by calling Mao Zedong a "dictator". The Real Madrid forward found himself in an international scandal after a mistake on a talk show in which he called Mao Zedong a "Chinese dictator". The situation was exacerbated by an Internet meme that crossed the actor's appearance with a famous portrait of the Chinese leader. The combination of the photos caused a stir: fans burned Mbappe's shirts and damaged posters, and the Chinese Foreign Ministry stated that his words hurt the feelings of the entire nation. The phrase and the photo collage hurt the player and La Liga in his pocket. Mbappe lost three Chinese sponsors (Manganio, Dongfeng, Milkground), and lost $8 million in annual revenue. The league's broadcasting contracts worth more than 100 million dollars were also under threat of boycott. Chinese platforms Dongqiudi and RedNote immediately removed references to the soccer player. Despite the apologies from Mbappe and Real Madrid, the strict boycott in China continues. t. me.