French Prosecutors Probe Paraguayan Senator Over Racism Against Kylian Mbappe

The Paris prosecutor's office has launched an investigation into Celeste Amarilla, a senator from Paraguay's Liberal Radical Party, for aggravated public insult and incitement to hatred. The probe follows a complaint by the French Football Federation after Amarilla posted racist and xenophobic remarks on X targeting French captain Kylian Mbappe. These attacks followed France's 1-0 victory over Paraguay in the 2026 FIFA World Cup Round of 16 on July 4.

Amarilla described Mbappe as a "colonised Cameroonian pretending to be French" and made derogatory claims about his intelligence, suggesting he "sucked on coconuts" instead of mother's milk. Mbappe responded by calling Amarilla a "despicable woman" and "unworthy of her position," stating her "brazen racism" overshadowed the efforts of the Paraguayan national team.

French President Emmanuel Macron and FIFA President Gianni Infantino both condemned the remarks, with Macron praising Mbappe for scoring a goal against racism. The Government of the Republic of Paraguay also rejected the statements, clarifying they were made in Amarilla's individual capacity.

Despite admitting the posts were written in the heat of the moment, Amarilla later demanded an apology from Mbappe. She threatened to sue him for "gender-based violence" and political violence, citing the previous imprisonment of Ronaldinho in Paraguay as a precedent. On July 9, Amarilla renewed her attacks during a Senate speech, using vulgar insults and claiming Mbappe refused to shake a Paraguayan player's hand.