Chinese sports broadcasters have removed Real Madrid’s match against Racing Santander in the eleventh round of the Spanish league from their weekly broadcast schedule, in a punitive step directed against the royal club following controversial remarks made by its French striker Kylian Mbappé.
This step comes in implementation of the directives of the China Media Group stipulating the suspension of broadcasting matches involving the team in which Mbappé plays. Mundo Deportivo confirmed that the anticipated match has completely disappeared from the Migu platform, which broadcasts sporting events in the country, depriving about 400 million Chinese users from following the match.
The roots of the crisis go back to Mbappé’s remarks on “The Bridge” programme presented by his teammate Aurélien Tchouaméni, where he was asked about his favourite mocking image and answered laughing that he frequently uses an image in which his facial features were merged with the image of the late Chinese leader Mao Zedong, describing him as a “dictator”. These comments sparked a wave of widespread anger in China, prompting local companies to terminate their sponsorship contracts with the player, while the official television and radio corporation (CCTV) suspended the broadcasting of Spanish league matches and removed advertisements associated with it.
Mbappé hastened to issue an apology statement in French, Chinese and English, in which he acknowledged that his comment “was unfortunate” and that he unintentionally caused offence to the feelings of many in China and beyond, stressing his deep respect for the Chinese people and their history. Real Madrid later joined the apology with an official statement expressing its regret for any dissatisfaction caused by the player’s remarks, stressing its full respect for China, its history, culture and its large audience there.
Despite these apologies, the repercussions went beyond the media aspect to take on dimensions of a comprehensive boycott against the French star in Chinese markets, where his name was removed from digital platforms and sponsors’ accounts on social networks, and his shirts were withdrawn from several stores. Companies such as Dongpeng beverages, Mengniu dairy products and Milk Ground cheeses also immediately terminated their contracts with him.
The removal of the Real Madrid match from the Chinese broadcast schedule is seen as the first concrete punitive step against the club, amid fears of greater marketing repercussions on product and shirt sales, especially since China represents a significant proportion of the club’s international marketing revenues. The crisis remains open amid continued Chinese pressure and official bodies demanding a fuller apology.
