China says it takes Mbappe’s apology ‘seriously’ after Mao dictator comment

China said it has taken an apology from Real Madrid superstar Kylian Mbappe seriously after comments he made poking fun at Mao Zedong caused a social media storm and saw Spanish football yanked off state TV. Mocking former leader Mao — blamed by historians for millions of deaths — is taboo in China and the French player’s remarks saw him become the latest foreign sports figure to anger Beijing. The clip of the video interview with French show The Bridge — since taken down — saw Mbappe talk about being amused by an internet meme of his face digitally altered onto “some guy, think he’s a Chinese dictator”, an apparent reference to Mao.