In March, Kurt Zouma caused outrage. One video showed him kicking, throwing shoes at and hitting his cat like a soccer ball. The video went viral on social media. Just a few days ago, the soccer star pleaded guilty to a court in London. Now the verdict is here. The France international has been forced to do 180 hours of community service for animal cruelty. However, that is not all. Zouma is also not allowed to keep cats for five years. The West Ham star will also have to pay £9,000 (€10,570) in court costs. That was decided by the court in London on Wednesday.
The cats had previously allegedly damaged a chair in the house. “The cat was dependent on you, you had to take care of it,” the judge said. “You have to realize that others look up to you and many young people aspire to emulate you.” The judge also stressed that Zouma and his younger brother Yoan, who laughed while filming the incident, showed “genuine remorse”.
Brother Yoan, who is under contract with Dagenham & Redbrige in the fifth tier, has to do 140 hours of community service. He is also not allowed to keep cats for five years. He was the one who uploaded the video to the Snapchat social media platform. The video caused outrage not only in England. Kurt Zouma Adidas sponsor fired the West Ham United pro. Today, Wednesday, the association again emphasized that abuse of animals is strongly condemned. The club imposed the highest possible fine on the player as soon as the incident became known. The money was donated to several national and international animal welfare organizations. West Ham also called on the public to close the case and give Zouma a chance to learn from his mistake.
