Thierry Henry denies criticizing Mbappé: "I didn't speak about him"

Thierry Henry posted a video clarification on his social media to deny statements falsely attributed to him concerning Kylian Mbappé, as the 2026 World Cup approaches.

For several days, parody accounts had been spreading a statement attributed to the former France striker, now a consultant for CBS Sports. In these false remarks, Henry allegedly criticized Mbappé for refusing to shake hands with N’Golo Kanté, claiming that “your club reputation has already taken a hit this year” and that creating tension with “the most respectable player of this generation” was “a line not to cross”.

“Please, can you stop believing everything you see on the Internet?” Henry responded in his video, filmed from Los Angeles where he is preparing his coverage of the tournament. “I didn’t speak about Kylian Mbappé, I don’t even know what happened.”

The man with 123 caps and 51 goals for France placed the incident within a recurring pattern. “People like to create stories. It’s not the first time. Once it was about Bayern-PSG, another time about Fifa and yet another about I don’t know what. People create stories, stop believing what you see on the Internet.”

Henry concluded by assuring he had “spoken about nothing recently and especially” about the France captain, to whom he “wishes the best”, as well as to all the players and staff, before ending with an “Allez les Bleus”. France faces Senegal on Monday, June 16 (9 p.m.) for its opening match in the competition.