China’s official state broadcaster has executed its threat to halt the transmission of La Liga matches, with Spanish league fixtures missing from its sports channels on Saturday as the fallout from Kylian Mbappé’s controversial remarks regarding the late Chinese leader Mao Zedong continues to escalate.
Agence France-Presse (AFP) confirmed that CCTV channels refrained from broadcasting the Villarreal vs. Espanyol and Atlético Madrid vs. Levante fixtures, marking the first practical implementation of the broadcast suspension since the crisis erupted, despite formal apologies issued by the player, Real Madrid, and La Liga.
However, live streaming of both matches continued via the Migu platform, owned by China Mobile, according to observations by AFP journalists. The platform holds a digital broadcast agreement for all 380 La Liga matches per season through 2030, restricting the observed blackout strictly to state television networks.
The controversy broke out after a clip circulated showing Mbappé commenting on a satirical meme that placed his face onto Mao’s body, using the phrase “Chinese dictator.” His comments sparked widespread outrage across China, prompting China Media Group to suspend La Liga broadcasts alongside commercial advertisements featuring the French star.
Commercial repercussions hit Mbappé directly, with three Chinese sponsors terminating their partnerships with him, while La Liga and its president, Javier Tebas, initiated damage-control efforts to safeguard one of the league’s most vital international markets.
The escalation underscores substantial financial risks tied to international media rights; AFP cited a La Liga source stating that China and the United States together fund the majority of these rights, which generated a total value of €748 million during the 2024–2025 season.
The potential impact also extends to Real Madrid, with China accounting for 10% to 15% of the club’s shirt and merchandise sales, according to Spanish newspaper Marca, alongside the club’s lucrative sponsorship deals with Chinese enterprises, placing its commercial interests under heightened pressure.
Catalan outlet Sport drew comparisons to the 2019 NBA crisis, when Daryl Morey, then-General Manager of the Houston Rockets, posted a message supporting Hong Kong protesters, triggering a television and commercial boycott. Estimated NBA revenue losses for the 2019–2020 season reached around $200 million, while the Rockets reportedly lost approximately $20 million in canceled commercial agreements.
NBA Commissioner Adam Silver estimated in February 2020 that the financial fallout could cost the league hundreds of millions of dollars, likely capping total losses below $400 million. CCTV did not resume regular NBA broadcasts until 2022, following an isolated appearance during the 2020 Finals, leaving the crisis to impact league revenues for years after the initial tweet.
