Europe

The French far-right leader Jordan Bardella has criticised the footballer Kylian Mbappé over his call for young people to vote against the “extremes” in parliamentary elections this month.

“I have a lot of respect for our footballers, whether Marcus Thuram or Kylian Mbappé, who are icons of football and icons for youth … But we must respect the French, we must respect everyone’s vote,” Bardella told CNews TV on Tuesday.

“When you’re lucky enough to have a very, very big salary, when you are a multimillionaire … then I’m a little embarrassed to see these athletes … give lessons to people who can no longer make ends meet, who no longer feel safe, who do not have the chance to live in neighbourhoods overprotected by security agents.”

On the eve of France’s opening match at Euro 2024, which is taking place amid political turmoil after President Emmanuel Macron’s shock decision to call a snap election, Mbappé warned on Sunday “the extremes are knocking at the doors of power”.

The comment by France’s popular captain followed an intervention by the team’s forward Thuram, who had urged people to “fight daily” to prevent Bardella’s National Rally (RN) from gaining power.

Mbappé did not name the RN but said he supported the same values and position as Thuram. “Kylian Mbappé is against extreme views and against ideas that divide people. I want to be proud to represent France; I don’t want to represent a country that doesn’t correspond to my values, or our values,” Mbappé said.

That call resonated with some young people in Mbappé’s former neighbourhood, an underprivileged Paris suburb, but was immediately criticised by the RN. Bardella was speaking a day after France won its Euro 2024 opening match in which Mbappé sustained a broken nose.