French football star Kylian Mbappé is once again making headlines not just for his brilliance on the pitch, but for a social media misstep that has drawn widespread ridicule.
Softfootball confirmed that the Real Madrid forward, who recently returned to action in the FIFA Club World Cup, shared a celebratory photo on Instagram page after scoring a spectacular bicycle kick against Borussia Dortmund.
However, fans quickly noticed that the image appeared to be poorly photoshopped to include more supporters in the stadium. The now-viral post shows Mbappé mid-air, executing his third goal of the match, a stunning strike that helped secure Real Madrid’s qualification to the semi-finals. Captioned:
The post referenced the illness that had kept the French star sidelined during the group stage. But it wasn’t the goal that caught the internet’s attention it was the crowd. Keen-eyed fans spotted several irregularities in the background of the photo, taken at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
Distorted figures, blurry faces, and oddly repeated silhouettes suggested that the crowd had been digitally inserted to mask the visibly empty seats. Social media erupted with sarcasm and humor.
“Is this what Real Madrid fans look like now?”
one user quipped, poking fun at Mbappé’s recent move from PSG. Another joked,
“Kylian, your fans are literally unreal,”
while others labeled the edit:
“Super Photoshop.”
The post has since garnered more than four million likes, turning into a viral moment for all the wrong reasons. The incident comes amid mounting criticism over the Club World Cup’s lack of atmosphere and fan engagement.
FIFA’s decision to host the expanded tournament in the United States has drawn scrutiny, particularly as stadiums remain half-empty during most matches.
Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo recently reported that ticket prices for Tuesday’s semi-final between Chelsea and Fluminense at MetLife Stadium plummeted from $473.90 to just $13.40 in 72 hours an indication of the struggle to fill seats even for high-profile fixtures.
The optics have raised concerns about the viability of FIFA’s global expansion ambitions, with poor turnout threatening the tournament’s image.
Recall, Softfootball earlier reported that UEFA has confirmed it will uphold fines and suspended bans for Real Madrid players Kylian Mbappé, Dani Ceballos, and Antonio Rüdiger, following incidents during their Champions League round-of-16 second leg clash away to Atlético Madrid at the Metropolitano Stadium.
While Mbappé’s return is a welcome boost for Los Blancos and fans, the Instagram post has unintentionally highlighted deeper problems plaguing the competition.
Whether the edit was the work of his media team or a broader attempt at damage control, it has become a symbol of the tournament’s artificial efforts to simulate fan enthusiasm.
For now, Mbappé may have delivered on the field, but off it, he’s been caught offside this time, by Photoshop and the ever-watchful eye of the internet.
