Real Madrid star admits they call Mbappe dictator

Real Madrid goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois has offered a hilarious glimpse into the club's dressing room dynamics, revealing that the squad openly embraces the viral internet memes depicting Kylian Mbappé as a ruthless dictator.

The Belgian shot-stopper confirmed that the players actively use it to tease their superstar teammate and that they even coined a song. 

The "dictator" meme originated from fans satirising Mbappé's authority and brazen attitude. Given his profile, staggering contract negotiations during his time at Paris Saint-Germain, and his status as the undisputed leader of the France national team, internet culture began humorously portraying him as a supreme ruler who controls transfer policies, dictates lineups, and banishes unwanted players.

Speaking to the media, Courtois admitted that the Real Madrid players are fully aware of the narrative and frequently use it to their advantage.

"Kylian Mbappé a dictator? We laugh about it in the dressing room all the time!" Courtois revealed.

The goalkeeper even noted that the viral AI-generated songs and TikTok edits that accompanied the meme have made their way into the Santiago Bernabéu facilities.

"We even sing the song… I think he finds it funny too," Courtois added.

The lighthearted teasing in the Spanish capital perfectly mirrors the dynamic Mbappé experiences while on international duty with France.

His national team colleagues, most notably Paris Saint-Germain winger Ousmane Dembélé, have also leaned into the joke.

Dembélé famously dubbed Mbappé "Mobutu," a direct and deeply specific reference to Mobutu Sese Seko, the military dictator who ruled Zaire for over three decades.

Mbappé himself was forced to address the viral trend last month in an interview with L'Équipe. While the forward expressed some reservations about the lack of historical awareness among football fans comparing him to figures responsible for actual atrocities, he explicitly exempted his teammates from any criticism.

"Ousmane, that's a different thing. He took that from social media. He's just having a laugh," Mbappé stated in September.