La Liga Blackout: CCTV drops Real Madrid match after Mbappe joke

Real Madrid's La Liga match against Racing Santander was not broadcast on Chinese state television on Sunday. The omission marks the latest development in the dispute between the Chinese state broadcaster and the Spanish league over Kylian Mbappe's recent comments.

CCTV operates two sports channels, and neither aired the match, which kicked off at 15:15 GMT. This is the second consecutive week that no La Liga games from matchweek 11 have been shown on public television. The China Media Group, which oversees CCTV, formally suspended La Liga broadcasts on October 26. The group stated that apologies from the league, the club, and the player were an absolute prerequisite for resuming coverage.

The controversy began after a video of Mbappe resurfaced in April. In the clip, he referred to Mao Zedong as a dictator while discussing a viral internet meme that superimposed his face onto the former leader's portrait. Mao, who died in 1976, is a sensitive figure in China due to policies linked by historians to mass starvation and millions of deaths.

Mbappe described his comments as ill-judged and apologized. Real Madrid and La Liga both expressed deep regret. China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it took the player's apology seriously. Jose Mourinho, the Real Madrid coach, said on Saturday that the club had done its part to resolve the issue. However, it remained unclear if official talks to restart broadcasts had begun.

The blackout affects a large audience, as millions of Chinese fans follow the Spanish league. The match was available on Migu, a digital streaming service owned by the state-owned China Mobile network. Migu did show Barcelona's 6-1 victory over Alaves on Saturday, but the Real Madrid game did not appear to be broadcast on that platform either.

Major Chinese brands canceled sponsorship deals with Mbappe following his remarks. The incident fits a pattern of friction between overseas sports figures and Chinese audiences. In 2019, China cut ties with the NBA for several years after Houston Rockets General Manager Daryl Morey tweeted support for Hong Kong protesters. La Liga matches are typically a staple of CCTV's sports lineup alongside the English Premier League and other European top flights.

La Liga had not responded to a request for comment by the time of publication. The situation leaves the league without a primary broadcast partner in one of its largest international markets.