Kylian Mbappe will lead France into the World Cup semifinal on Tuesday, July 14, as Les Bleus take on Spain in a high-profile clash in Arlington, Texas.

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Mbappe has been one of the biggest stars at the World Cup, scoring eight goals to enter the semifinal round tied atop the Golden Boot leaderboard alongside Lionel Messi.

The France forward has been mostly concerned with on-field matters at the World Cup, but took some time earlier this month to address a major controversy stemming from France's 1-0 win over Paraguay in the round of 16.

The match in Philadelphia was contentious and featured multiple altercations between the sides. After the final whistle, there was an incident between Mbappe and Paraguay goalkeeper Orlando Gill, which ended with Gill throwing the ball at Mbappe.

"I tried to shake his hand, but since he didn’t pay me any attention, I lost my temper," Gill said after the game.

Though tempers were high, the incident caused one Paraguayan politician to cross the line in comments about Mbappe.

What Paraguay Sen. Celeste Amarilla said about Mbappe

In response to the incident, Paraguayan senator Celeste Amarilla posted racist remarks on her X account, some of which were later deleted.

"The brute didn't even learn to write," she said of Mbappe, before comparing him to a chimpanzee.

She added: "You should've shown him the finger, Orlando Gill; I do it in the senate and nothing happens!!!"

In a separate post, Amarilla wrote of Mbappe: "Colonized Cameroonian, pretending hard to be French, resentful, newly rich, arrogant, and ugly."

Amarilla's words would not go unanswered.

What Mbappe said in response to Amarilla

The France star hit out at Amarilla on social media, calling her a "despicable woman."

"Madame Celeste Amarilla, You are a despicable woman and unworthy of your position," Mbappe said.

"You do not represent Paraguay, that country which has sweated passion and honor throughout the competition. Through your recklessness and your brazen racism, the entire world has already forgotten the journey and the historic effort that your players accomplished during this World Cup, making way for an incompetent woman who gives the worst possible image of her country."

The fallout from Amarilla's comments

Amarilla has been condemned by the Paraguayan senate, which formally rejected her "discriminatory and racist" comments last week.

The Paraguayan government said Amarilla's remarks were "contrary to the values ​​and principles that inspire peaceful coexistence and respect for human dignity that our country promotes."

In response to the controversy, Amarilla wrote an open letter to Mbappe admitting she regretted using the racist insults. At the same time, however, she also demanded that Mbappe apologize to her and also threatened to sue the France supersar.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino "unequivocally condemned" Amarilla's remarks, stating: "All of football and society stand in solidarity with the France captain – we need to fight racism and defeat it all together."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: What did Paraguay senator say about France star Kylian Mbappe?

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In a match Tuesday in Arlington, Texas, featuring two of soccer's biggest heavyweights, Spain put in a masterful performance, frustrating France to the tune of a 2-0 win to advance to Sunday's World Cup final at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

It marks Spain's second-ever appearance in a World Cup final. Spain won the tournament in 2010.

The Spaniards will face the winner of the second semifinal between defending champion Argentina and England, taking place Wednesday.

Spain's first goal came in the 22nd minute when Mikel Oyarzabal scored from the penalty spot after Spain teenager Lamine Yamal drew a foul with a heady play.

France defender Lucas Digne was trying to collect the ball after an awkward bounce when Yamal, a day after his 19th birthday, raced in from behind to challenge in the penalty area. Yamal was kicked as Digne tried to clear the ball.

Oyarzabal's fifth goal of this year's World Cup marked the first time either of the two teams had trailed in their seven games in this tournament. It was his 30th goal in 60 international games for Spain.

A day after his 19th birthday, Yamal was denied a goal on a close offside call that came soon after Spain defender Pedro Porro's give-and-go with Dani Olmo in the 58th minute had put Spain up 2-0. But it was Yamal's smart play against a veteran defender that put Spain in the lead.

"We gave it our all in order just to go through to the final," Porro said. "We knew that we're a very tough team, we're doing things really well. This is our team, it's not about me."

After a quarterfinal win over Belgium last Friday, Yamal said he believed France should fear Spain. Those words certainly proved true.

The loss means France failed in its effort to reach its third consecutive final, after winning in 2018 and losing in a penalty shootout to Argentina four years ago. They instead will play in the third-place game in Miami Gardens, Florida, on Saturday, the day before the final at MetLife Stadium across the river from New York City.

This win on soccer's biggest stage marked the third summer in a row that Spain beat France in a tournament semifinal match. Yamal scored in a 2-1 win in the 2024 European Championship semifinals just days before his 17th birthday, and La Roja won 5-4 in Nations League play last year.

France had allowed only two goals in its first six games in this tournament. Spain goalkeeper Unai Simón has six shutouts while allowing only one goal in seven games so far.

Kylian Mbappé was in France's starting lineup after the striker exited in the 77th minute of the team's quarterfinal win over Morocco. Mbappé scored his eighth goal against Morocco and entered the semifinals even with Argentina superstar Lionel Messi in the race for the Golden Boot. The 39-year-old Messi has a World Cup record 21 goals in his career, one more than the 27-year-old Mbappé.

Spain's run at this year's World Cup has extended its unbeaten streak in regular time to 37 matches (28 wins and nine draws) since March 2024. That broke the country's previous record of 35 in a row from 2007-09.

The loss broke France's record-matching streak of six consecutive World Cup wins, which also was accomplished in the 2018 and 2022 tournaments.

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