Kurt Zouma, defender of the Blues and English club West Ham, has provoked strong reactions since the broadcast, Tuesday, February 8, of videos where we see him hitting his cat.
In the two clips released on Snapchat, which the tabloid The Sun relayed, Zouma, 27, can be seen chasing her cat around her suburban London home, kicking her, before throwing a shoe at her and ultimately slapping her on the muzzle as the animal is in the arms of a child.
The whole scene unfolds with laughter in the background and laughing emojis embedded in the footage. According to Sunthe defender with eleven selections for the France team would have been furious, because his cat would have broken a vase and torn off a light fixture. “I want to apologize for my actions”reacted Kurt Zouma in a press release. “There are no excuses for my behavior, which I sincerely regret. I also want to say how deeply sorry I am to everyone who was upset by the video. I want to assure everyone that our two cats are perfectly fine and healthy.. »
West Ham, the club he joined in August 2021 from Chelsea, announced on Wednesday that it had inflicted on its defender the “largest possible fine”. The maximum fine a club can impose on their player is usually two weeks’ wages, which in the Frenchman’s case would amount to nearly 300,000 euros. “The player immediately accepted the fine and demanded that the amount be donated to an animal rights organization”said the club.
An online petition
The sports equipment manufacturer Adidas announced later in the day that it had broken the contract binding it to the footballer. “We have closed our investigation and we can confirm that Kurt Zouma is no longer an athlete under contract with Adidas”said the German-based company in an email to Agence France-Presse (AFP).
Zouma’s gesture is a ” gratuitous, stupid and nasty act of violence”for his part, reacted Noël Le Graët, the president of the French Federation (FFF), in a written statement sent to AFP. “He is a boy known to be respectful (…). I note, however, his apologies; I hope he learns the necessary lesson.”he added.
Shortly before this announcement, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), the most important association for the protection of animal causes, announced on Twitter that the player’s two cats had been taken away from him: “We want to reassure everyone that we are investigating and that the cats are safe and that we are taking care of them”. The day before, the association had called the video “shattering”.
A petition, posted on the Change.org platform, collected more than 200,000 signatures on Wednesday afternoon. “In the UK we have laws against animal abuse, laws that should apply to everyone, rich or poor, famous or not! We call on the Metropolitan Police and the RSPCA to urgently investigate and prosecute the perpetrators of this heinous act,” according to the text of the petition. The case escalated to the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, who called Zouma’s actions a “contemptible”.
“This is how your cat feels”
The West Ham club still lined up its defender in the evening against Watford, for the 24and Premier League day. During this match won 1-0 and which Zouma played in its entirety, the Frenchman was constantly booed by opposing fans, and sometimes even by those of West Ham. At one point Watford fans sang “this is what your cat feels” in reaction to a foul committed by Josh King on Kurt Zouma.
His trainer David Moyes, who “loves animals very much”justified its decision to establish him by explaining that his work was “to choose the best team and [que] Kurt was one of them”. “Some people will be disappointed by it and I understand that”, he also admitted. One of West Ham’s sponsors, Experience Kissimmee, a Florida resort, has announced that it will review its financial ties with the club.
Fifth Division club Dagenham and Redbridge FC have announced that they will take action against Kurt Zouma’s brother, Yoan, who plays there and filmed the scene. The 23-year-old shared his “deep regret for [sa] participation in the video ».
