Mbappe says that mental health remains taboo in elite sports

French Captain Kylian Mbappe said that top athletes are still reluctant to freely speak about mental health because they are afraid of being judged, and added that his passion for the game is to be disillusioned with football.

In a broad interview with The magazine team On Wednesday, the 26-year-old attacker spoke frankly about the pressure with which he is confronted and the perception that elite players cannot show vulnerability.

«The complexity is that people are struggling with it. You can’t show it,» said Mbappe, when he was asked for cyclists such as four-time Tour de France champion Tadej Pogacar recognizes those moments of emergency during the competition.

«If he had said it in the beginning, he would have been torn apart. But if you win, you are almost inviolable. If you lose a match and say that you are tired, people say it is because you played bad. Even if you felt like this earlier.»

The Real Madrid striker, who spoke twice in two World Cup qualifying victories against Ukraine and Iceland, said he was adhering to the most demanding standards.

«I never wanted to accept failure, so I don’t mind if people blame me for that. I am very hard for myself, more than most people, so I am peace with that,» he said.

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Mbappe also emphasized the thin line between public expectations and private emotions.

«At home I can say it. Or if the context is good. If I win the World Cup, you come three days later and I ask, I can say it. But after a defeat? People won’t accept it,» he said.

He added: «To be honest, if I didn’t have this passion, football would be disgusted a long time ago.»

The interview also hit his career trajectory with France, Paris St Germain and now Real Madrid, but Mbappe insisted that the toughest battles are often internal.

«You don’t have the right to lose, to be wrong. But that is also the reason why people hold you to a large extent – because you accept it all, because you stay resilient and always want to win,» he said.

Published on September 10, 2025