The beautiful game has been marred by ugliness after a Paraguayan senator unleashed a torrent of racist abuse against French superstar Kylian Mbappé. Celeste Amarilla's vicious social media tirade sparked outrage, prompting the French Football Federation to lodge a formal complaint with the authorities.
Mbappé was the target of Amarilla's verbal onslaught, which included mocking his heritage and describing him as 'a colonised Cameroonian desperately trying to pass himself off as French'. The senator also suggested that Paraguayan players should have physically assaulted the France captain, who had secured his team's progress to the quarter-finals with a crucial penalty.
Mbappé hit back at Amarilla, branding her a 'despicable woman' and saying she didn't represent Paraguay. He argued that her 'reckless racism' had overshadowed the Paraguayan team's impressive World Cup performance, allowing an 'incompetent woman' to give their country a bad name.
The Paris prosecutor's office has confirmed it's investigating Amarilla's comments as potential hate speech, with such offences punishable by up to one year in prison and a 45,000 euro fine. The Paraguayan government has distanced itself from the senator's remarks, saying they go against their country's values of respect and dignity.
French President Emmanuel Macron weighed in, expressing his solidarity with Mbappé and condemning racism. He tweeted: 'Another goal for Kylian Mbappé – this time against racism! All my support. When words smear, our values respond: dignity, respect, fraternity.' Even the Paraguayan President Santiago Peña got in touch, writing to Macron to condemn the remarks.