Video shows soccer star dropkick, punch his cat — backlash is savage: 'Motherf**ker... try to kick me!'

West Ham United star defender Kurt Zouma has apologized after an appalling video showing him abusing his pet cats went viral. In the video, Zouma is first seen laughing as he drop kicks one of his cats. In another scene, we see him punching a cat out of a child's arms, among other abuses.

Content warning: disturbing scenes of animal cruelty:

Social media was quick to react, sinking in their virtual claws:

Though Zouma apologized, saying there were “no excuses for my behavior, which I sincerely regret," his cats were taken away by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals pending an investigation. Zouma was reportedly fined “the maximum amount possible,” roughly $338,000, which West Ham said would be donated to charities for animal welfare.