Tebas seeks to calm Mbappé's controversy with China

At LaLiga's headquarters, Javier Tebas met today with Yao Jing, China's ambassador to Spain, to try to contain the controversy generated by Kylian Mbappé's statements, Real Madrid forward, about a meme that compares him to Mao Zedong.

Origin of the controversy

The controversy arose in an interview of the Real Madrid forward with the programme The Bridge, where he was asked about the memes circulating about his figure. Mbappé replied humorously, saying: “The one I laughed at the most is the one where they use my face on a Chinese dictator. I use it a lot with my friends”. His words triggered a strong reaction in China.

In the Asian country, the controversy would have caused the rupture of commercial agreements linked to the footballer and the suspension of the broadcast of the Spanish competition. The measure put at risk LaLiga's relationship with the Chinese market, a key segment for the international expansion of its audiovisual rights.

LaLiga president Javier Tebas described the situation as a challenge that could affect millions of Chinese fans who follow Spanish football. He emphasized the importance of the Chinese market for LaLiga's global growth strategy.

Javier Tebas apologises to China after Mbappé meme with Mao

Diplomatic dialogue

To mitigate the tension, Tebas held a meeting with Yao Jing, China's ambassador to Spain, with the aim of seeking solutions that allow the episode to be overcome. In his words: “Today I held a meeting with the ambassador of China in Spain to address the situation generated by Kylian Mbappé's statements and to seek solutions that allow us to overcome this episode”.

During the encounter, Tebas recalled the years of collaboration between LaLiga and Chinese authorities, citing the strategic agreement with the Chinese Professional Football League valid until 2029 and the agreements with China Media Group. He noted that these projects have contributed to the growth of Chinese football and to bringing Spanish competitions to millions of followers.

Mbappé in China hurts Madrid's revenue and LaLiga's broadcast

The president reiterated that China remains a strategic partner for LaLiga and that the organisation will work so that an isolated incident does not damage the progress achieved. The meeting represents an attempt at sports diplomacy to preserve the bilateral relationship and ensure the continuity of audiovisual rights in the future.