Kylian Mbappé condemned a Paraguayan senator on Monday for making racist comments about him following France's World Cup victory over Paraguay, calling her "despicable" and "not worthy" of her position.
Paraguayan senator Celeste Amarilla on Monday wrote a post on social media platform X which described France captain Mbappé as "a colonized Cameroonian pretending to be French".
She added: "This brute hasn't even learned to write. Instead of breastmilk, he grew up sucking on coconuts."
Her comments have drawn widespread condemnation, including from French President Emmanuel Macron.
Macron's office said Paraguay's president had written to him to express support and condemn the racist remarks made by the senator.
Amarilla, meanwhile, has demanded Mbappé apologise for describing her as a "despicable woman" in his response and has threatened legal action, in an open letter published on Monday night,
France's World Cup victory over Paraguay in Philadelphia on Saturday was a bruising and bad-tempered match.
Amarilla claimed that France "won by a fluke" and said Mbappé had been "scared to death all game, like his entire team".
Mbappé hits back
Mbappé responded to her remarks in a post on X, in which he also defended the Paraguay team.
"Madame Celeste Amarilla, you are a despicable woman and unworthy of your position. You do not represent Paraguay, a country that has sweated passion and honour throughout the competition," he wrote.
"Through your recklessness and your brazen racism, the entire world has already forgotten the journey and the historic effort your players achieved during this World Cup, making way for an incompetent woman who presents the worst possible image of her country."
In her letter on Monday night, Amarilla said she had deleted her earlier post after reconsidering its language, but insisted that Mbappé should still apologise. She added that her disagreement was with Mbappé personally, not with France itself.
She said she had written her initial message in response to what she called Mbappé's "arrogance" before and during the match, in particular his failure to shake hands with Paraguay's goalkeeper after the final whistle.
"You displayed your contempt, your arrogance and your poor manners in a single second. It hurt me and it hurt my entire country, deeply," she wrote. "France should hold you accountable, because it is a nation of knights, with centuries of history and expertise. France should hold you accountable for your behaviour."
The French Football Federation has announced plans to file a criminal complaint, describing Amarilla's remarks as "utterly abhorrent and unacceptable".
In a statement, Paraguay's foreign ministry said Amarilla's comments "are contrary to the values and principles that inspire peaceful coexistence and respect for human dignity, which our country promotes".
(with newswires)
