China's state broadcaster "CCTV" has suspended its broadcasts of Spanish La Liga football, along with any match featuring Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappé, after the French player's comments about a satirical "meme" image comparing him to former Chinese leader Mao Zedong sparked controversy.
TheSpanish news agency "EFE" reported on Tuesday that the decision has already taken effect. It forms part of a wider package of measures that earlier saw broadcasters pull all advertisements and video clips featuring the French player.
China warned that words and actions that "hurt the feelings of the Chinese people will be met with rejection from all sectors of society".
Several local companies announced the end of their commercial deals with Mbappé at the same time, rejecting what they considered conduct offensive to the feelings of the Chinese people.
Mbappé's name deleted from the Ballon d'Or rankings
The fallout spread to the Chinese sports website "Dongqiudi", which replaced Mbappé's name with the phrase "this person does not exist" in its 2026 Ballon d'Or rankings. The Real Madrid striker had finished second behind England's Harry Kane, with Spain's Lamine Yamal third.
Rendered in Chinese, the phrase carries the meaning "this person does not exist" or "this person was not found". The move followed the controversy over his comments.
The comments that ignited the crisis
According to the Spanish news agency, the storm began when an interviewer asked Mbappé about his favourite satirical image. He replied: "The image that made me laugh the most is the one where they use my face on the picture of a Chinese dictator. I use it a lot with my friends".
Mbappé named no Chinese official directly. A composite image placing his face on a picture of former Chinese leader Mao Zedong has spread widely across social media in recent months.