French athletes avoided talking politics. The rise of the far right changed that.
France's Kylian Mbappé controls the ball during a training session for the Euro soccer championship. His public expression of political opinions broke with tradition.
Hassan Ammar/AP
Paris
France’s soccer captain and arguably the best player in the world, Kylian Mbappé, is in the news again.
And not just because he sustained an injury to his nose Monday night that might stop him from playing any more games in the Euro 2024 soccer championship, denting French hopes of glory.
Mr. Mbappé seized the spotlight before the tournament began, making a dramatic and highly unusual public intervention in French politics.
Why We Wrote This
French athletes are strongly discouraged from expressing their political opinions. But the prospect of a far-right victory in upcoming elections has prompted top stars, including soccer captain Kylian Mbappé, to urge fans to vote against extremists.
Through the media, he pleaded with France’s young people to get out and vote against the far right in the upcoming snap legislative elections.
The National Rally (RN), led by Marine Le Pen, stands a realistic chance of winning a parliamentary majority in the vote July 7. That would put France under its first hard-right government since World War II, when the country was under German control.
Mr. Mbappé told voters that France was “at a crucial moment” in its history and called on his fans to reject “extremists.”
His comments came a day after teammate Marcus Thuram urged the French to “fight so that the RN does not get through.” The sports newspaper L’Équipe published an open letter signed by 200 athletes and sports personalities calling on readers to vote against the National Rally.
This outbreak of efforts by French sporting royalty to use their collective voice for political ends is highly uncommon. Professional contracts and sponsorship deals typically bind athletes to silence. But even the French Football Federation (FFF), which has squirmed in the past over questions of secularism and LGBTQ+ issues in sports, says Mr. Mbappé and other players have the right to express themselves.
With the Paris Olympics opening in just over a month, Mr. Mbappé’s political stand is a reminder that – despite the pressures of sponsors and sporting federations – professional athletes, like other cultural stars, can sway the collective consciousness.
Coincidentally, a pioneer in this field, and perhaps its most famous practitioner, was in Paris last week. At the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, U.S. sprinter Tommie Smith raised his fist on the victory podium in a Black Power salute, alongside fellow athlete John Carlos, to protest racial injustice in the United States.
Mr. Smith, now 80 years old, said that despite the backlash he faced in the aftermath of his controversial gesture – he was banned by the U.S. Olympic Committee from competing again – he never regretted it. Asked if, given the chance, he’d do it again today, he said, “I do it every day.”
“Politics are not just part of sports,” he said during a conversation with journalists at the National History of Immigration Museum. “Politics are sports.”
Regarding his injury, FFF officials have not said when Mr. Mbappé might return to the Euro championship soccer pitch; there is talk of his wearing a protective mask during matches.
But when it comes to expressing his political views, Mr. Mbappé has taken the mask off.
“In this country, we value diversity, tolerance, and respect,” he said in his plea to fans. “I hope we can make the right decision and that I can remain proud to wear the French team jersey on July 7.”