Celeste ⁠⁠Amarilla: The Paraguayan leader who triggered a diplomatic spat with racist remarks against Kylian Mbappe

When France took on Paraguay in the round of 16 on Sunday at the FIFA World Cup 2026, the match was anything but friendly. The Paraguayan performance featured elbows thrown, careless tackles, and a relentless hammering of the referee. But when the final whistle blew, it was the Les Bleus players who emerged victorious with the score line reading 1-0.

While many called Paraguay’s performance rough and disgraceful, it’s a post by a lawmaker from the South American nation that has caused uproar and outrage, with the French football team captain, Kylian Mbappe, calling out her vitriol and condemning it as racist.

The French Football Federation (FFF) has also announced that it will be filing a report with the prosecutor’s office against Paraguay’s Celeste Amarilla.

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But what did Amarilla post that has prompted Mbappe to respond? What’s the row all about?

What did Paraguay’s Amarilla post about Mbappe?

After Paraguay’s loss to France at the FIFA World Cup 2026, the 61-year-old Celeste Amarilla published a lengthy message on X, targeting France’s captain, Kylian Mbappe.

“That idiot didn’t even learn to write. Instead of drinking mother’s milk, he was sucking on coconuts,” she wrote about Mbappe.

She further described the French forward as a “colonised Cameroonian who was desperately trying to pass himself off as French”. “Paraguay’s players should have ‌slapped him after the ‌match,” she added.

Amarilla also went on to label Mbappe as “resentful, arrogant, and ugly.” “He was nervous and scared stiff for the whole match,” she continued. “Just like the rest of his team. They couldn’t score a single goal, and they won by the skin of their teeth.”

France's Kylian Mbappe celebrates his team victory at the end of the World Cup round of 16 football match between Paraguay and France. Mbappe has slammed the Paraguayan senator for her racist remarks. AP

How have Mbappe and the world reacted?

Mbappe, who is in the running for the World Cup Golden Boot, has hit back at Amarilla’s comments, describing her as a “despicable woman”.

In a post on X, the French captain wrote, “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.

“I will never allow people like her the freedom to spread their hatred and racism across the world.”

The French football federation has also backed its player. In a statement, the FFF said, “The racist remarks made by Paraguayan Senator Celeste Amarilla targeting Kylian Mbappe are utterly despicable and unacceptable. How can anyone make such comments? These remarks are criminal and reprehensible. They must be prosecuted here as elsewhere. The FFF is reporting the matter to the public prosecutor’s office with a view to legal proceedings.”

The FFF further added, “Now more than ever, the FFF is committed to combating racism and all forms of discrimination. These remarks bring shame upon those who make them and those who disseminate them. The players of the French national team represent France; it is our country that is being insulted.”

France’s President Emmanuel Macron also extended his support to Mbappe. “Another goal for Kylian Mbappe. Against racism this time. All my support. When words defile, our values respond: dignity, respect, fraternity. @KMbappe.”

Notably, even the Paraguayan government has sided with Mbappe, condemning Amarilla’s racist remarks. “The Government of the Republic of Paraguay deplores and rejects the statements made by Senator Celeste Amarilla, directed at the captain of the French national football team, Kylian Mbappe. These statements are contrary to the values and principles that inspire peaceful coexistence and respect for human dignity, which our country promotes," said a statement from the government.

Who is the Paraguayan politician at the centre of the row?

Following the row, many have one question on their mind — who is Celeste Amarilla?

Born in 1964, Amarilla is a member of the leading opposition party in Paraguay. She has held a seat as a national senator for the Authentic Radical Liberal Party (PLRA) after previously serving as a federal deputy between 2018 and 2023, representing the Capital district.

A part of PLRA since 1982, the 61-year-old also participated in the foundation of Authentic Radical Liberal Youth, which is the youth wing of her party.

Besides her racist attack on Mbappe, Amarilla has garnered controversy throughout her political career. In 2020, she was suspended without pay for 60 days after she publicly declared that between 60-70 per cent of lawmakers had obtained their seats through alleged illicit means.

Earlier, in April, she also made headlines when she publicly challenged Basilio Nunez, who served as the leader of the National Republican Association, also known as the Colorado Party, to display his medical degree amid accusations regarding alleged fake university titles.

France's Kylian Mbappe celebrates after the match as France qualify for the quarter finals of the World Cup as Paraguay's Orlando Gill looks dejected as Paraguay are eliminated. Reuters

Now, the senator has become internationally known for her comments about Mbappe. And it seems that Amarilla is in no mood to back down. On X, she responded to the French footballer in a lengthy message. She wrote, “The problem is between you and me… Nothing against France — the problem is with you.”

She further explained that after France’s win, Mbappe had said, “if we have to get our hands dirty, we will”. “We are not stupid, we understood perfectly that the “dirt” meant the Paraguayan team, and the Paraguayan team is all of us.”

She also referred to Mbappe’s apparent disrespect to the Paraguayan goalkeeper when he extended his arm to congratulate him after the team’s victory.

Amarilla also seemed to apologise to Mbappe about the racist tone of her remarks, saying, “I soon regretted having mistreated you with the same insults I myself receive, because I am dark-skinned and Latina. I regretted it and deleted the post. I realised I was repeating the very patterns I detest, and I deleted it.”

She also demanded an apology from Mbappe for calling her “despicable”, saying it was “pure and outright gender-based violence”.

With inputs from agencies