State television joins the boycott
The Mbappé backlash in China just got bigger. According to Spanish agency EFE, which cites the Chinese outlet The Paper and sources inside the channel, state broadcaster CCTV has suspended its Liga coverage and the matches in which the Real Madrid forward might appear. It is also said to be pulling every advert that features him.
The measure reportedly took effect overnight between Monday and Tuesday. Nothing is official yet. CCTV has not confirmed it publicly, so for now the report rests on those sources.
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The broadcaster’s move follows a rough few hours for the France captain’s commercial profile. Drinks giant Dongpeng, dairy group Mengniu and cheese maker Milkground each ended their work with him, saying they have zero tolerance for words or acts that hurt national feelings.
The trigger is a video that has spread online in which the player talks about the memes made of him. He says the funniest one he has seen puts his face on a man he takes to be a Chinese dictator. AFP’s fact-checkers could not confirm at first that the clip is genuine. It appears to point to a meme that places his face over an image of Mao Zedong. Plenty of similar edits exist, merging his features with all sorts of historical figures, and he is not believed to have made them.
Beijing has weighed in as well. China’s foreign ministry called it natural for Chinese people to reject remarks that offend them in common.
If CCTV’s decision holds, it hits Liga’s reach in one of its biggest overseas markets as much as it hits Mbappé’s endorsements.
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