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Kylian Mbappé of France during the UEFA Euro 2024 Football Championship match between Austria and France on June 17, 2024
“We’re at a crucial moment in our country’s history,” Mbappé warned, alluding to what he sees as threats posed by Marine Le Pen’s far-right National Rally, which performed spectacularly in the recent European parliamentary elections, spurring President Emmanuel Macron to dissolve parliament and call for snap elections. Mbappé encouraged fans to vote on June 30 to block the “extremes knocking at the doors of power.”
Many players on the French team are immigrants or children of immigrants – Mbappé’s parents are from Cameroon and Algeria – putting them at odds with Le Pen’s plans to limit migration strictly. Mbappé’s announcement came hours after his teammate, Marcus Thuram, also urged fans to vote against the far right.
His call to action came after tens of thousands took to the streets of France on Saturday to denounce the far right in protests organized by labor unions and supported by the newly formed left-wing coalition. Polls show the National Rally in the lead, but we’ll be watching to see whether the backlash gains momentum against the far-right’s success ahead of the vote at the end of the month.