Mohamed "Momo" Henni (French pronunciation: [mɔamɛd eni], Arabic: محمد هني; born 15 May 1989) is a French-Algerian YouTuber and internet personality. He is known for his videos in which he reacts to football matches, most notably those of Olympique de Marseille, and his excesses of anger following the defeats of his favorite club that often result in him destroying television sets.
| Mohamed Henni | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personal information | ||||||||||
| Born | 15 May 1989 Marseille, France | |||||||||
| Nationality | French, Algerian | |||||||||
| Children | 1 | |||||||||
| YouTube information | ||||||||||
| Years active | 2016–present | |||||||||
| Subscribers | 2.1 million | |||||||||
| Total views | 380.30 million | |||||||||
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Last updated: 17 March 2024 | ||||||||||
Early life and education
editMohamed Henni was born in May 1989. Both of his parents are immigrated Algerians originating from the region of Oran. Mohamed is the youngest of six children.[1][2] He was raised in Marseille, which explains his passion for Olympique de Marseille and the city, and Miramas, before obtaining a baccalauréat.[2] After joining a college of economics, he dropped out of school and did various jobs to earn a living.[citation needed]
Career
editHenni began posting videos on Facebook in October 2012, burning a jersey of Paris Saint-Germain — the rivals of Olympique de Marseille – in a forest after a 2–2 draw between the clubs.[2] He created his YouTube channel in January 2016.[1] Henni is a supporter of Olympique de Marseille, and has notably worked alongside the ultras group of the Winners. He has become famous thanks to his videos in which he comments on football matches, and he is renowned for his humoristic criticisms of players, his puns, and for breaking numerous televisions on camera.[2][3][4]
Following the 2016 Nice truck attack, Henni posted a video in which he challenged the Islamic State after there were threats of a new attack in Marseille.[1][5] Following this, he reported having found a bullet from a firearm shot into his car and receiving direct threats from members of Daesh.[6] David Thomson, a journalist who specializes in jihadism, confirmed the threats made on Henni.[7]
In 2018, Henni's notoriety started to grow rapidly, which would allow him to do partnerships with sports betting sites and other brands, to make derivative products.[1] His expressions have notably been imitated by footballers such as Antoine Griezmann, Florian Thauvin, Boubacar Kamara, and Franck Ribéry.[2][3][8] In December 2018, his YouTube channel surpassed the one-million subscriber mark.[1] In the beginning of 2019, he confessed to RMC Sport and Libération to working alone and not using any notes for his videos, instead improvising a large part of his text right after a match and doing no film editing.[1][2] His social media activity allows him to live off it, notably thanks to monetization and to sponsors, allowing him to rent rooms at the Hôtel-Dieu de Marseille to film his videos.[1] However, he insists on buying the televisions he breaks himself.[2] In February 2019, Le Parisien wrote that Henni is "almost as famous as the players of Marseille".[9] His video style has brought him international attention, with notably a BBC report on him.[10][11]
In 2020, Henni did several livestreams with footballer Karim Benzema during the lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic in France, with one of the streams becoming controversial due to Benzema's remarks on Olivier Giroud, another French footballer.[12][13][14] In June 2020, he collaborated with the hip-hop group Pancakes Bros for a video in Dunkirk.[15] In March 2021, following the defeat of Marseille against amateur club Canet Roussillon in the Coupe de France, Henni promised to go run naked in the city center of Canet-en-Roussillon, which would bring him significant media attention.[16][17] He would make a similar bet regarding arch-rivals PSG's UEFA Champions League quarter-final match-up with Bayern Munich in April. Henni stated that if PSG would eliminate Bayern, he would go up the Eiffel Tower naked.[18] In May 2021, he featured in the intro of the music video for "Sapapaya", a song by rappers L'Algérino, SCH, and Jul.[19]
In February 2024, Henni entered the restaurant business by creating a virtual restaurant of kebab sandwiches called "Klüb Kebab", in partnership with company No Brainer.[20][21] The kebab service was initially offered in the cities of Marseille and Paris.[22] On 12 March 2024, Henni announced that PSG player Kylian Mbappé's lawyer had sent him a formal notice threatening legal action for the use of Mbappé's name for commercial purposes without authorization in the description of one of his kebabs.[23][24] The description stated that the round bread used in the kebab was "as round as Mbappé's skull".[25][26]
Criticism
editHenni's videos are sometimes criticized for his harsh remarks and the pressure he weighs on players. Some, such as Patrice Evra and Valère Germain, have explicitly complained.[1][2] He also received strong reactions from Nicolas Anelka following comments on his career.[27] However, Henni changed his speech by making it progressively less violent than before, mostly due to the negative criticism he received.[1][2]
Personal life
editOn 1 October 2020, Henni announced that he had become a father.[28]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i Blin, Simon (24 February 2019). "Mohamed Henni, olympien pas calme" [Mohamed Henni, not calm Olympien]. Libération (in French). Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Jaquin, Alexandre (9 January 2019). "Qui est Mohamed Henni, Le Marseillais qui casse sa télé à chaque défaite de l'OM?" [Who is Mohamed Henni, the Marseillais who breaks his TV at each defeat of OM?]. RMC Sport (in French). Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ a b "Mohamed Henni : star des réseaux sociaux et supporter de l'OM" [Mohamed Henni: social media star and OM supporter]. France Info (in French). 26 December 2018. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Mohamed Henni, le supporter fou aux 37 télévisions cassées : " J'annonce 3–0 pour l'OM face au TFC"" [Mohamed Henni, the crazy supporter with the 37 broken televisions: "I predict 3–0 for OM against TFC"]. La Dépêche du Midi (in French). 17 May 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Quand Marseillais et djihadistes de Daech s'écharpent sur les réseaux sociaux" [When Marseillais and jihadists of Daesh strangle each other on social media]. Le Parisien (in French). 23 July 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "VIDEO. Le Marseillais qui attaquait Daech sur internet se dit menacé" [VIDEO. The Marseillais who attacked Daesh on the internet is said to be threatened]. Le Parisien (in French). 13 August 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Un Marseillais défie Daech dans une vidéo, l'Etat islamique lui répond" [A Marseillais challenges Daesh in a video, the Islamic State responds to him]. La Dépêche du Midi (in French). 25 July 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ Lentz, Pierre (14 November 2018). "Quand Antoine Griezmann imite l'inimitable Mohamed Henni" [When Antoine Griezmann imitates the inimitable Mohamed Henni]. HuffPost (in French). Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ Jérémie, Pavlovic (4 February 2019). "Le boom des youtubeurs du foot" [The boom of football YouTubers]. Le Parisien (in French). Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "The fan who smashes his TV when his team loses". BBC Sport. 6 February 2019. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ Choquet, Julien (7 February 2019). "Désormais, même la BBC parle de Mohamed Henni" [From now on, even BBC talks about Mohamed Henni]. Konbini Sports (in French). Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Vidéo : Benzema défend Germain face à Mohamed Henni dans un live Instagram" [Video: Benzema defends Germain in front of Mohamed Henni in an Instagram livestream]. Konbini Sports (in French). 24 March 2020. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ Bacon, Lucie (30 March 2020). "Un nouveau live de Karim Benzema sur Instagram fait polémique" [A new livestream of Karim Benzema on Instagram becomes controversial]. Konbini Sports (in French). Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Benzema se lâche sur Giroud: "On ne confond pas la F1 et le karting"" [Benzema expresses himself on Giroud: "We do not confuse F1 and karting"]. RMC Sport (in French). 29 March 2020. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ Allebée, Jérémy (29 June 2020). "Les Pancakes Bros et Mohamed Henni veulent faire rayonner Dunkerque" [The Pancakes Bros and Mohamed Henni want to make Dunkirk shine]. La Voix du Nord (in French). Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Coupe de France : L'influenceur marseillais Mohamed Henni va courir « à poil » à Canet-en-Roussillon" [Coupe de France: The Marseillais influencer Mohamed Henni goes running "naked" in Canet-en-Roussillon]. 20 minutes (in French). 9 March 2021. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Coupe de France: Canet presse Mohamed Henni de tenir son drôle de pari" [Coupe de France: Canet pressures Mohamed Henni to do his funny bet]. RMC Sport (in French). 8 March 2021. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Mohamed Henni va devoir monter tout nu la Tour Eiffel" [Mohamed Henni will have to go up the Eiffel Tower naked]. 13 or du Hip Hop (in French). 14 April 2021. Retrieved 15 April 2021.
- ^ "L'Algérino, SCH et Jul invitent Momo Henni dans le clip "Sapapaya"" [L'Algérino, SCH and Jul invite Momo Henni in the "Sapapaya" clip]. Mouv' (in French). 15 May 2021. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
- ^ Kocher, Grégory (8 February 2024). "Mohamed Henni se lance dans la restauration avec Klüb Kebab" [Mohamed Henni launches into the restaurant business with Klüb Kebab]. 13OR du Hip-Hop (in French). Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ Durand, Sabine (6 February 2024). "No Brainer lance une "celebrity brand", Klüb Kebab, avec Mohamed Henni" [No Brainer launches a "celebrity brand", Klüb Kebab, with Mohamed Henni]. Neo Restauration (in French). Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ "Le youtubeur Mohamed Henni lance Klüb Kebab à Paris et Marseille, aux côtés de No Brainer" [YouTuber Mohamed Henni launches Klüb Kebab in Paris and Marseille, in partnership with No Brainer]. Snacking.fr (in French). 4 February 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ Marciano, Dan (12 March 2024). "PSG : Kylian Mbappé se fait vanner, il saisit la justice" [PSG: Kylian Mbappé is mocked, he takes legal action]. Le10sport.com (in French). Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ "PSG : l'influenceur marseillais Mohamed Henni mis en demeure par Kylian Mbappé" [PSG: Marseille influencer Mohamed Henni given notice by Kylian Mbappé]. Le Parisien (in French). 12 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ "Foot : Kylian Mbappé aurait porté plainte contre l'influenceur Mohamed Henni à cause de ses kebabs" [Football: Kylian Mbappé has filed a complaint against influencer Mohamed Henni due to his kebabs]. Le Figaro (in French). 12 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ "MOHAMED HENNI AFFIRME ÊTRE "ATTAQUÉ EN JUSTICE" PAR KYLIAN MBAPPÉ... POUR UNE HISTOIRE DE KEBAB" [MOHAMED HENNI AFFIRMS BEING "SUED" BY KYLIAN MBAPPÉ... FOR A KEBAB STORY]. RMC Sport (in French). 12 March 2024. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- ^ "Gros clash entre Nicolas Anelka et le YouTuber Mohamed Henni" [Big clash between Nicolas Anelka and the YouTuber Mohamed Henni]. CNews (in French). 13 August 2020. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
- ^ "Mohamed Henni annonce qu'il est papa, les internautes en PLS" [Mohamed Henni announces that he is a father, Internet users don't feel well]. RadioFrance (in French). 2 October 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2024.