West Ham player Kurt Zouma, has been dropped by his sponsor Adidas two days after a video surfaced in which the French footballer was seen hitting his pet cat in his kitchen.
The club condemned Zouma’s actions and fined him 250,000, which they state is the maximum fine they are able to hand out.
In the viral video, Zouma is seen attacking the pet at his 2million euro mansion while his brother films him. Zouma, drops the moggy and boots it in mid air across the kitchen floor.
The French international then chases the animal around his dining room in front of a child as the cameraman laughs. Zouma also hurls a pair of designer shoes at the pet which frantically tries to escape.
In a final clip, he is seen forcefully slapping the cat in the face — and out of the child’s arms.
Zouma’s cats have now been rescued by the RSCPA after thousands of people lodged complaints.
Nevertheless, Zouma issued a grovelling apology for the attack and insisted it was an isolated incident.
He wrote, “I want to apologise for my actions. There are no excuses for my behaviour, which I sincerely regret.
“I also want to say how deeply sorry I am to anyone who was upset by the video. I would like to assure everyone that our two cats are perfectly fine and healthy.
“They are loved and cherished by our entire family, and this behaviour was an isolated incident that will not happen again.”
A source said: “It seemed that Kurt had got angry at the cat for accidentally smashing some sort of vase and tearing down a light fixture from the kitchen cupboard.
“But what he does next is completely unacceptable. Kurt kicks it, throws shoes at it and then slaps it. The poor cat looked so scared.”
The disturbing footage filmed by Zouma’s brother Yoan with the caption “sa commence”, which translates into English as “it is starting” with a dozen laughing face emojis in later clips.
An RSPCA spokesperson said: “This is a very upsetting video. It’s never acceptable to kick, hit or slap an animal, for punishment or otherwise.”
Dr Maggie Roberts, of charity Cats Protection, said: “Any person seen or suspected of treating an animal badly, whether this is physical violence, neglect or any other form of cruelty should be reported to the RSPCA.
“The police work closely with the RSPCA to investigate cases of animal cruelty. Cats are sentient beings and experience pain and fear. Beating up a cat will only cause it to suffer physically and mentally.
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