The Zouma case in court. French international footballer Kurt Zouma, accused of abuse on his cat, after the broadcast of a video on social networks, is summoned this Tuesday to British justice. Yoan, brother of the 27-year-old international, suspected of having recorded and broadcast the video where the West Ham player was seen kicking and slapping his cat, is being prosecuted for complicity. The two brothers are summoned for a first hearing this Tuesday in London.
The facts of which they are accused date back to February 6. At that time, the English tabloid The Sun, which made its front page on the case, says the defender was furious with his cat, who accidentally broke a vase and snatched a light fixture. The player’s two cats have been taken into the care of animal welfare society RSPCA, which had launched proceedings for Kurt and Yoan Zouma to be prosecuted under animal welfare legislation.
“This is how your cat feels”
The London club had not suspended its player and had even made him play a match the evening of the revelation of the case. During the game, Kurt Zouma had logically experienced no respite. Taken aback by the supporters, including some of his club, Zouma had been shouted down the whole match and, when he fell to the ground after a foul by an opponent, some fans sang: “This is how your cat feels”. The mayor of London Sadiq Khan, in person, had judged the club’s decision to let the Frenchman play “contemptible”.
More broadly, the case had provoked a huge wave of protest. On Twitter, under the hashtag #ZoumaOut, some demanded his layoff by West Ham or asked that Didier Deschamps never call him back to the France team. Given the extent of the controversy, the player then hastened to publish an apology. “I want to apologize for my actions. 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 in good health,” wrote the French international in a press release.
Fine of 300,000 euros
The player was finally fined 300,000 euros, the highest possible, imposed by his club. His equipment supplier Adidas had broken a sponsorship contract with the player. Still on the sponsor side, “Experience Kissimmee”, a Florida resort partner of the West Ham club, had announced that it was going to review its financial ties with the club. “To see that player Kurt Zouma was in West Ham’s starting XI last night was heartbreaking”wrote the company on its Twitter account, the day after the revelation of the case.
West Ham had assured that, according to the information available to the club, the cats did not “suffered no physical injury”. The club then assured that the financial penalty imposed on the player had been donated to animal protection associations.