France captain Kylian Mbappe has hit back at Paraguayan senator Celeste Amarilla after she launched a racist attack on him following Paraguay’s World Cup exit.
The incident came after France beat Paraguay 1-0 in Philadelphia on Saturday to reach the World Cup quarterfinals.
Mbappe’s penalty proved the difference in a bruising match.
According to Reuters, Amarilla posted a long racist tirade on X after the game.
She described Mbappe as a “colonised Cameroonian” and a “brute”.
She also said Paraguay’s players should have slapped him after the match.
Mbappe responded with a strongly worded statement.
He called Amarilla a “despicable woman” and said she was unworthy of her position.
“You do not represent Paraguay, that country which has sweated passion and honour throughout the competition,” Mbappe wrote.
He said Amarilla’s remarks had shifted attention away from Paraguay’s World Cup effort.
Mbappe also said he would not allow people to spread hatred and racism across the world.
French federation takes action
The French Football Federation has escalated the matter.
It said it would file a criminal complaint over Amarilla’s comments.
The federation described the remarks as “utterly abhorrent and unacceptable”.
“These remarks are criminal and reprehensible. They must be prosecuted here as elsewhere,” the FFF said.
It added that the French national team players represent France and that the country itself was being insulted.
The Paraguayan government also rejected Amarilla’s statements.
It said the remarks were contrary to the values of peaceful coexistence and respect for human dignity.
The government said Amarilla’s comments were her own and did not represent Paraguay or its people.
French President Emmanuel Macron also backed Mbappe.
“Another goal for Kylian Mbappe. Against racism this time,” Macron wrote on X.
Basilio Nunez, the head of Paraguay’s legislature, also rejected racist and xenophobic messages.
France assistant coach Guy Stephan described the remarks as disgraceful, vile and outrageous.