FRANCE forward Kylian Mbappe has condemned a Paraguayan senator over racist remarks she made following Paraguay’s loss to France in the round of 16 at the World Cup.

Amarilla, a senator from Paraguay’s Liberal Radical Party, posted a series of racist comments on X on Saturday, describing Mbappe as a “colonised Cameroonian, desperately trying to pass himself off as French” and as a “brute who had not learned to write.” Paraguay’s players should have slapped him after the match, she added.

Mbappe responded to Amarilla, calling her a “despicable woman” who was “unworthy” of serving in Paraguay’s Congress.

“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,” Mbappe wrote on X.

Late Monday, Amarilla issued an open letter in French and Spanish to Mbappe on social media, in which she said her problem was with the player, not the country of France. She wrote that she regretted mistreating Mbappe with “the same insults” she’s received as a mixed-race person and that she had deleted her post.

But she also demanded an apology from Mbappe, accusing him of gender-based violence in his comments about her, and threatening legal action if he didn’t retract them.

The Paraguayan government released a statement on Monday afternoon condemning Amarilla’s remarks as “contrary to the values and principles that inspire peaceful coexistence and respect for human dignity that our country promotes.” It added that the senator’s comments do not represent either the Paraguayan government or the Paraguayan people.

The Paris prosecutor’s office told The AP today that it had launched a probe after the national unit for combating online hate received a complaint from the French Football Federation (FFF).

France’s president, Emmanuel Macron, and sports minister Marina Ferrari voiced support for the national team’s captain.

“One more goal for Kylian Mbappe. This time against racism,” Macron wrote on X, adding the captain had his “full support.”

France’s assistant coach Guy Stephan also condemned the remarks on Monday.

“In three words, it’s indignant, abject, scandalous,” he said.

Before Saturday’s match, former Paraguay goalkeeper Jose Luis Chilavert referred to France as “a squad from Africa.” Philippe Diallo, president of the FFF, said Chilavert “was once a great goalkeeper” who had now “fallen into disgrace.”