CONFIRMED
Three Chinese brands, Eastroc Beverage (Dongpeng), Mengniu and Milkground, have ended their partnerships with Kylian Mbappé, Reuters reported on 27 Oct 2026. The break follows a backlash over a video in which Mbappé allegedly joked about a meme placing his face on an image resembling Mao Zedong. Dongpeng’s statement, quoted by AFP, cited a zero-tolerance policy towards “any behaviour that offends national sentiments”.
What we know
Reuters reports that a string of Chinese brands dropped Mbappé after the backlash. Dongpeng said on Weibo that it firmly opposed “behaviour that hurts national sentiment” and was ending all cooperation “effective immediately”. Reuters says the dairy and cheese companies Mengniu and Milkground also cut ties.
The Associated Press, via TRT World, reports that the three companies announced the endings on Tuesday in similarly worded statements. None of them said what prompted the decision.
The trigger, according to Reuters, was a video that surfaced on Monday 26 Oct 2026. In it, Mbappé says the funniest meme he had seen of himself had his face photoshopped onto “some guy”, adding: “I think he’s a Chinese dictator.” Reuters says the comments were believed to refer to a meme of Mbappé superimposed on an image of Mao.
That clip has not been independently verified. Reuters said it could not authenticate it, and AFP Fact Check could not immediately verify it either.
The reaction still reached the top. Reuters quotes China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson saying that words and actions that hurt the feelings of the Chinese people “will naturally be met with joint opposition from all sectors of the Chinese society”. Reuters also reports that China Daily and Global Times condemned the remarks on 27 Oct, while football outlet Dongqiudi called them “offensive to China and the Chinese people” on 26 Oct, according to AFP.
Mbappé’s representatives did not immediately respond to Reuters, and neither did LaLiga or Real Madrid.
One more brand appears in the coverage. Reuters reports that RedNote said its content partnership with Mbappé ended on 31 Dec 2024 and that it would remove related promotional materials.
The background matters here. Reuters notes that jokes about Mao, China’s founding leader who died in 1976, are considered disrespectful and remain a social taboo. Fans have long pasted Mbappé’s face onto military and political leaders to suggest he calls the shots at his clubs.
What we don’t know yet
The money. Nobody has put a figure on these deals, and none of the statements reported by Reuters or the AP mention one. Any number you see elsewhere is a guess, not a fact.
We also do not know whether the video is genuine, edited or stripped of context, since neither Reuters nor AFP Fact Check could confirm it. And Mbappé has not given his side publicly in the reporting so far.
What is rumored
The Paper, a Chinese state-backed outlet, reports that CCTV has stopped broadcasting all LaLiga matches and events involving Mbappé and removed every advert featuring him. It cites sources linked to the broadcaster. Reuters and EFE relayed the claim, but Reuters attributes it to The Paper without confirming it, and Goal notes that CCTV has issued no official statement. Treat it as unconfirmed until CCTV or LaLiga speaks.
A bigger claim comes from Spanish outlet The Objective, which says The Paper, citing anonymous official sources, expects the ban to widen into a complete break in collaborations. That is a forward-looking claim from unnamed sources, and no corroboration has surfaced.
What it means
Commercially, this is a straight red with no VAR review. Three brands left within a day of a clip that two major newsrooms could not authenticate, and the Foreign Ministry signalled that wider opposition would be “natural”. That speed shows how little patience sponsors have when national sentiment is invoked.
For Mbappé the stakes cut both ways. If the video holds up, critics will hold it against him. If it does not, three deals ended over something nobody has proved.
Until his camp responds or the clip is verified, the fair verdict is the referee’s one: play stopped, decision pending.
