What began as a controversy after Paraguay’s elimination from the 2026 World Cup ended up turning into an international scandal.
Paraguayan senator Celeste Amarilla published a message directed at Kylian Mbappé with a series of racist insults, referring to his Cameroonian origin and using expressions that sparked an immediate wave of criticism inside and outside Paraguay.
“Colonized Cameroonian, pretending to be tough by being French, resentful, newly rich, arrogant, and ugly. Instead of mother’s milk he sucked coconuts, and the most educated thing he heard was chimpanzees”, she said.
Her words were widely shared on social media, and many users described them as hate speech incompatible with the public office she holds.
The French striker’s response was not long in coming.
Through a statement, Mbappé strongly condemned the parliamentarian’s remarks and wrote: “You are a despicable woman and unworthy of your office”, adding that she “does not represent Paraguay” and lamenting that the Paraguayan national team’s sporting journey had been overshadowed by statements of that kind.
The forward also stated that he will never allow people with that kind of rhetoric to have the freedom to spread hate and racism, closing the message with a firm defense of equality and respect.
The controversy went beyond the sports world and sparked an intense debate on social media. While some highlighted Mbappé’s response for publicly confronting racism, others questioned a political authority using that kind of language to refer to an athlete.
Within a few hours, the exchange went around the world and once again put on the table an issue that remains one of football’s and society’s great debts: racism.
This was Kylian’s response:
“Madam Celeste Amarilla,
You are a despicable woman and unworthy of your office. You do not represent Paraguay, that country which has exuded passion and honor throughout the entire competition. Because of your recklessness and your unabashed racism, the whole world has already forgotten the journey and the historic effort that your players achieved during this World Cup, giving way instead to an incompetent lady who offers the worst possible image of her country. I will never allow people like you to have the freedom to spread their hate and racism throughout the world”.