The UN High Commission for Human Rights gave its support on Tuesday July 7 to the captain of the France team Kylian Mbappé, denouncing the “racist” and “vile” comments of a Paraguayan senator who targeted him after the round of 16 of the 2026 World Cup.
“The racist and dehumanizing remarks made against French footballer Kylian Mbappé by Paraguayan senator Celeste Amarilla are despicable, and unfortunately, do not constitute an isolated case,” lamented the spokesperson for the high commission in a press release. “The racist incidents reported during the 2026 FIFA World Cup reflect a broader phenomenon that affects football and sport more broadly,” he said.
Senator Celeste Amarilla violently attacked the superstar of the Blues after her country’s defeat against France on Saturday at the end of a game punctuated by numerous mistakes and acts of anti-play on the part of the Paraguayans (1-0).
“This idiot hasn’t even learned to write.” Instead of sucking breast milk, he suckled coconuts, and the most educated beings he had ever heard of were chimpanzees,” the opposition MP in the Paraguayan Senate wrote on X.
Reaction from Emmanuel Macron
“A Cameroonian from colonization, desperately trying to pass as a Frenchman, resentful, nouveau riche, arrogant and ugly. He was nervous and scared to death the entire match, like his entire team,” she continued in another post on X.
This nauseating outing provoked the anger of the No.10 of the French team who described the senator on X as “despicable” and “unworthy of her position”.
Kylian Mbappé then received numerous signs of support, including those from President Emmanuel Macron and the government of Paraguay, which judged the senator’s remarks “contrary to the values and principles which inspire human dignity”.
“Public figures have an increased responsibility to combat racism, discrimination and hate speech in their public interventions,” recalled the High Commission, calling on “States and sports organizations” to “actively work to prevent acts of racism and any other form of discrimination.”
