London (AFP) – The English football club West Ham announced on Wednesday February 9 that it had inflicted on its French international defender Kurt Zouma the ” biggest possible fine “, after the broadcast the day before of a video where the player mistreats his cat and which scandalized England.
The maximum fine a club can impose on their player is usually two weeks’ wages, which in the Frenchman’s case would amount to almost 300,000 euros in total.
“The player immediately accepted the fine and demanded that the amount be donated to an animal rights organization.said the club.
Shortly before this announcement, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA), the largest animal rights association, indicated at the start of the afternoon that the player’s two cats had been removed from him.
“We want to reassure everyone that we are investigating and that the cats are safe and taken care of.“, tweeted the RSCPA.
“Kurt and the club are fully cooperating with the investigation and the player has voluntarily agreed to all measures initially taken, including giving the two family cats to the RSPCA for examination.“, explained for his part West Ham.
“Kurt is remorseful and, like everyone at the club, fully understands the intensity of the reaction to the incident and the need for action to be taken.“, he added.
A petition in French and English demanding legal action against the player was also a huge success on the change.org platform with nearly 170,000 signatures around 3:50 p.m. (French time).