French player Mbappe
France captain Kylian Mbappé has strongly condemned Paraguayan senator Celeste Amarilla over racist remarks she made after France’s 1-0 victory over Paraguay in the 2026 FIFA World Cup round of 16.
The incident followed Saturday’s tense encounter in Philadelphia, where Mbappe scored the match-winning penalty to send France into the quarter-finals.
Reacting on X, Mbappe wrote: “Mrs Celeste Amarilla, you are a despicable woman and not worthy of your position.”
He added: “You do not represent Paraguay, the country that has sweated passion and honour throughout the competition.”
The France captain also said: “Through your lack of awareness and your uninhibited racism, the entire world has already forgotten your team’s run and historic effort at this World Cup.”
Amarilla had described Mbappe as a “colonised Cameroonian who has really pretended to be French, embittered, nouveau riche, arrogant and ugly.”
She also claimed the Real Madrid forward was “scared to death” during the match.
The comments sparked widespread outrage in France, with Sports Minister Marina Ferrari describing them as “abject, disgraceful and all the more unacceptable coming from a politician.”
Mbappe, whose father is of Cameroonian origin, has become one of the leading figures in the fight against racism in football.
France will now face Morocco in Thursday’s World Cup quarter-final as the controversy continues to attract global attention.
