35: Philippe Auclair: plotting the path of Kylian Mbappé

French football writer Phiippe Auclair discusses his latest book, The Mbappé Project: Making a Football Superstar, about the careful orchestration of the career of France icon Kylian Mbappé. Philippe explains how Mbappé’s family and a tight-knit group of advisers have set a professional and commercial course from Monaco to Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid, and discusses how the complications of that club career have affected perceptions of the FIFA World Cup-winning striker. He also explores the differences between Mbappé’s public profile and those of earlier French heroes – including the likes of Eric Cantona and Thierry Henry, subjects of previous Auclair biographies – and what that might tell us about footballers and the media in 2026.  Outlines is presented, produced and edited by Eoin Connolly. Instagram: @outlines_podcast (  / outlines_podcast  ) Threads: @outlines_podcast (https://www.threads.com/@outlines_pod...) Bluesky: @outlinespodcast.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/outlinespodc...) TikTok: @outlines.podcast (  / outlines.podcast  ) Check out the newsletter: Outlines – notes in the margins of the sports industry (https://open.substack.com/pub/eoinfco...) Theme music from Upbeat: Crush - Kaleidoscope