Serge Aurier criticises French support for Mbappe and Dembele in Ballon d’Or debate

Serge Aurier has criticised what he sees as a lack of support in France for the country’s leading footballers, arguing that Kylian Mbappe and Ousmane Dembele are not given the recognition they deserve.

The former Cote d’Ivoire international made the comments while appearing on the Shadytime podcast. Aurier, who won 93 caps and scored four goals for his country, is now assistant coach of RC Lens U15.

He identified Mbappe as the clearest example of what he considers a failure to appreciate French stars. The 27-year-old France and Real Madrid forward has 107 international appearances and 67 goals, and enjoyed a strong individual year despite not winning major team honours.

Mbappe is the reigning two-time top scorer in the Spanish league and finished as the leading scorer at the 2026 World Cup. Aurier believes those achievements have not received sufficient recognition in his home country, particularly when compared with the praise Mbappe receives abroad.

Aurier also criticised Jerome Rothen, presenter of the RMC programme Rothen s’enflamme. He accused Rothen of favouring Lamine Yamal over Mbappe and, potentially, over Dembele, who is the current Ballon d’Or holder and is competing to win the award for a second successive year.

The former right-back then turned his attention to the debate surrounding Dembele and Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who are team-mates at Paris Saint-Germain.

“In France, they prefer Kvara to Dembele. It’s absurd,” Aurier said.

He described that preference as both revealing and particularly serious, according to his assessment of the situation. Aurier is a two-time Africa Cup of Nations winner, having lifted the trophy in 2015 and 2023.

Aurier spent three seasons at Paris Saint-Germain, making 81 appearances, scoring five goals and providing 14 assists. During his time with the Paris club, he won 12 trophies, including two Ligue 1 titles.