Question of the Day: did Kylian Mbappe humiliate Emmanuel Macron?

Ivan Zubkov

A truly great final of the World Cup between Argentina and France in Qatar will be remembered not only for the game, but also for the curious socio-political story that highlighted the specifics of French society, and not only. These are the words of consolation that the President of France would probably say to the leader of the national team after the defeat. Surely everyone paid attention to the fact that Mbappe did not seem to listen to his president, and generally tried to quickly escape from his arms. Here is how political scientist Dmitry Mikhailichenko comments on this story:

“Before the match, French President Emmanuel Macron, who loves PR, was full of optimism and said that he was waiting for the return of the cup “home” and the third championship for his country. After losing on penalties, Macron decided to cheer on the team's main star, the young Kylian Mbappe, who was born in France to a Cameroonian family.

How Macron Mbappe did not fawn and hug in response - a defiantly dry and even coldly indifferent, detached reaction, a player who scored a hat-trick, but lost the final to Argentina and his great PSG teammate Lionel Messi.

Macron rubbed his hands in anticipation of the growth of the rating and the national holiday on the Champs Elysees, but received a negative politicized story, which is already being discussed by all of France.

However, it is gratifying that this was shown on Russian television: Russians have already begun to forget that it happens that power is not sacred, and the president is just a hired manager, before whom it is not necessary to fawn and humiliate, but you can behave on an equal footing. And this is normal in a society of free citizens. However, Mbappe proved to be superior to Macron, which many in France did not like.

Russian propaganda, if necessary, will quickly say that such an approach is unacceptable for us and that is why the Western liberal democracies “freeze” in their France and Germany, that they do not respect the authorities and, in general, they will end soon.

Well, for Macron, this is a slap in the face, which he obviously did not expect, otherwise he would not have climbed three times to hug Mbappe, who did not even look at him. Mbappe and other dark-skinned French people are authorities for the same people from Africa, of whom there are tens of millions in France and who have the right to vote. For mannered and etiquette France, this behavior of Mbappe is not very approved and causes indignation among the bourgeois, and Macron wants to be a national leader, the president of all the French.

And so what happened is negative for Monsieur Macron. However, he is a politician, not an autocrat. He will figure out his positioning, he knows how to hold a blow, despite the fact that he seems to be a "squishy" and not a " tough man".

PS

Let me remind you that the presentation of awards after the previous World Cup final in Moscow (2018) was remembered not so much by Macron, although he was there, but by pouring rain and an umbrella.