French football star Kylian Mbappe has apologised to Chinese fans after comments about a viral internet meme sparked backlash and prompted several major Chinese brands to end their partnerships with him. Real Madrid forward Kylian Mbappe faced criticism after a video circulated online showing him commenting on a meme that superimposed his face onto the image of a Chinese dictator, without explicitly naming the individual. The remark appeared to refer to an image depicting Mbappe as Mao Zedong, China’s founding leader, who died in 1976. The authenticity of the video could not immediately be independently verified. In an apology issued on Tuesday in French, Chinese and English, Mbappe acknowledged that his comment was inappropriate and had offended people. Spain’s La Liga also expressed regret over the controversy, stressing that Mbappe’s comments were made in his personal capacity and did not represent the league. The controversy has triggered commercial consequences for the 27-year-old footballer, who enjoys a substantial following in China. Before Mbappe issued his apology, sports industry consultant Adam Zhang said a swift and sincere response would be important in addressing the growing controversy. For some Chinese supporters, however, the incident had already affected their perception of the footballer.