FIFA World Cup 2026: UN Human Rights slams Paraguayan Senator's "dehumanising" comments on Mbappe
Geneva, July 7
The UN Human Rights office has condemned Paraguay Senator Celeste Amarilla's remarks on Kylian Mbappe, calling them "racist and dehumanising" and part of a wider issue of racism in football and sports.
The Paraguayan Senator, following France's 1-0 win over the South American country in the FIFA World Cup round of 16, called Mbappe a "colonised Cameroonian", "pretending hard to be French, resentful, newly rich, arrogant, and ugly". Amarilla also said that France "won by a fluke and Mbappe was nervous and scared to death the whole match, like his entire team."
The UN Human Rights spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan condemned the "racist" remarks against Mbappe, describing them as unacceptable and part of a broader pattern of racism and discrimination in football and sports.
"The racist and dehumanising remarks against French footballer Kylian Mbappe by Paraguayan Senator Celeste Amarilla are despicable and, regrettably, not isolated. Reports of racist incidents during the FIFA World Cup 2026 reflect a wider phenomenon across football and sports more broadly," the UN Human Rights spokesperson said as quoted by the United Nations website.
The UN Human Rights spokesperson urged public officials, governments, sports organisations, and social media platforms to take stronger measures against racism, discrimination, and hate speech while ensuring effective accountability mechanisms.
"Public officials have a heightened responsibility to stand against racism, discrimination and hate speech in their discourse. States and sports organisations must actively work to prevent acts of racism and any other form of discrimination. They should also ensure that there are independent and effective accountability mechanisms in place. Social media companies also have a responsibility to prevent and address racial discrimination and xenophobic abuse on their platforms, in accordance with international human rights standards," added the UN Human Rights spokesperson.
In an X post, the UN Human Rights also said sport should promote equality, dignity, and respect, and that dehumanising language has no place in sport or public discourse.
"The power of sport must be used to promote equality, dignity & respect, not hatred or dehumanisation. Language that dehumanises people because of their race or ethnic origin has no place in sport or public discourse," the UN Human Rights said on X.
Notably, responding to the remarks of the Paraguayan Senator, Mbappe called her "a despicable woman" and "unworthy" of her position,
In a post on X, Mbappe said, "Madame Celeste Amarilla, you are a despicable woman and unworthy of your position. You do not represent Paraguay, that country which has sweated passion and honour throughout the competition. Through your recklessness and your brazen racism, the entire world has already forgotten the journey and the historic effort that your players accomplished during this World Cup, making way for an incompetent woman who gives the worst possible image of her country."
Earlier, French President Emmanuel Macron and FIFA President Gianni Infantino also condemned Amarilla's remark on Mbappe.
— ANI
Reader Comments
While I agree the remarks were unacceptable, I'm a bit uncomfortable with UN bodies jumping into every controversial statement. Shouldn't Paraguay handle its own politicians? Just feels like selective outrage sometimes. Still, calling someone "colonised" in this day and age is pretty disgusting.
As someone who loves football, this hurts deeply. Football should unite people across borders, not divide them with racism. Mbappe handled it with class - calling her out directly but focusing on the players' efforts. That's true sportsmanship! We need more voices like Macron and Infantino condemning this. 🏆⚽
Yaar, the irony is unreal! A South American politician calling an African-French player "colonised"?! Talk about pot calling kettle black. South America's own history with colonialism and racism is well-documented. This isn't just about Mbappe - it's about how deep colonial mentality runs globally. Even we Indians need to check ourselves sometimes.
Can't believe some people still think like this in 2026! 🤦♀️ Mbappe didn't choose where he was born - he's French, period. What is this "pretending to be French" nonsense? Reminds me of how some people question Indian origin players in other countries. Let people play for their nations without this garbage.
The UN is right to call this out, but let's be honest - this happens all the time in Indian football too. Remember how some people in India talk about African players in ISL? Or how we treat Northeast players sometimes? We need to clean our own house before pointing fingers.
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.