The first baby born in the Chilean city of Copiapó in 2022 was a boy named Griezmann Mbappé in honor of French soccer players Antoine Griezmann (pronounced an-twahn gree-ez-man) and Kylian Mbappé (pronounced kee-lee-ahn em-bah-pay).
The baby was born at Copiapó Regional Hospital at around 9 pm on New Year’s Day.
Here’s how his mother, Teodora Pacaje, explained the name to local reporters:
We love football. I chose the first name and his dad gave him the name Mbappé.
Ironically, the parents of the initial baby named Griezmann Mbappé — born in south-central France in November of 2018 — were forced by a judge to rename him in nearly 2019. (They chose “Dany Noé.”)
Sources:
- Parents name baby after favourite footballers but people fear he will be bullied – Daily Star
- Griezmann: not just a poster boy – The Times
- Servicio Salud Atacama tweet (2 Jan. 2022)
- Literal Baby-Name Police Won’t Let French Couple Name Their Kid “Griezmann Mbappé” – Deadspin
- French couple barred from calling son Griezmann Mbappe after football heroes – The Guardian
Image: Adapted from Antoine Griezmann – CdR – RM v ATL by DSanchez17 under CC BY 2.0.