Kurt Zouma

Early career

Zouma was named after a Jean-Claude Van Damme character, Kurt Sloan in the 1989 film Kickboxer. Born in Lyon, Zouma began his career at age nine with Vaulx-en-Velin until he was 15. He played as a right winger and also as a striker before switching to his current position of a defender.

Saint-Étienne

Zouma joined Saint-Étienne in 2009. On 2 April 2011, he signed his first professional contract, agreeing to a three-year contract. He was subsequently promoted to the senior team by manager Christophe Galtier ahead of the 2011–12 season, and initially played without a name on his shirt to protect him from media attention. Zouma made his professional debut at 16 years old, on 31 August 2011 in a Coupe de la Ligue match against Bordeaux, playing the entire match in a 3–1 win. On 17 September, he made his Ligue 1 debut in a 3–0 loss at Lorient; his first professional goal came on 19 November, replacing Paulão after nine minutes and finishing a corner kick to confirm a 2–0 win before half time at OGC Nice. He totalled 21 league games in his first season – 13 starts – and his other goal came on 14 January 2012, heading Banel Nicolita's corner for the only goal against lowly Sochaux at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard. On 20 April 2013, Zouma played in Saint-Étienne's 1–0 win over Rennes in the final of the Coupe de la Ligue. Eight days later in the Derby du Rhone away to Lyon, he opened a 1–1 draw by heading Yohan Mollo's corner after half an hour of play.…

Zouma is a France youth international having represented his nation at under-16 and under-17 level. He played with the under-17 team at the 2011 UEFA European Under-17 Championship and 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup. Zouma has been the captain for the French under-21 team. He was part of the under-20 team that won the 2013 World Cup in Turkey. In the quarter-finals against Uzbekistan in Rize, he headed the last goal of a 4–0 victory. Senior France manager Didier Deschamps wanted to build a defence around Zouma and fellow youngster Raphaël Varane, and on 19 March 2015, he was called him up for the first time for friendlies against Brazil and Denmark. He made his debut in the latter match ten days later, a 2–0 win at his former club ground with Saint-Étienne, the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, replacing Morgan Schneiderlin for the last eight minutes of the game. After his injury for Chelsea in February, Zouma missed France's hosting of UEFA Euro 2016. He returned to the squad in August 2017, replacing the injured Raphaël Varane for a World Cup qualifier against the Netherlands. He was put on standby for France's squad at the final tournament in Russia. Zouma earned his first France cap in over three years on 11 October 2018 as a substitute in a 2–2 friendly draw with Iceland, coming on as a substitute and winning the equalising penalty. On 11 June 2019, Zouma made his first start for the France senior team, played every minute of the match and scored his first senior international goal,…

A November 2013 report by FourFourTwo noted Zouma's strength, reading of the game, and aerial presence, while mentioning his occasional lapses in concentration. In January 2014, Zouma was named by British newspaper The Observer as one of the ten most promising young players in Europe. The newspaper wrote, "Blessed with exceptional power and technique, Zouma is also coveted by many for his leadership qualities." In February 2015, Match of the Day pundit Danny Murphy likened Zouma to Marcel Desailly, another Frenchman who played in defence for Chelsea. Writing after a draw with Manchester City, which included a strong run and perfectly-executed sliding tackle on Sergio Agüero, Murphy noted Zouma's reliability and confidence against the strong opponent, in addition to his pace. He predicted that Zouma could be a Chelsea mainstay for years to come, and would be an ideal replacement for captain John Terry, then aged 34. Ryan Shawcross called Zouma the "ultimate defender" for his speed, jump, passing, shooting and tackling, and said that Tottenham Hotspur's Toby Alderweireld was the only central defender on his level.

Zouma's parents emigrated to France from the Central African Republic. His older brother Lionel plays in the same position, and his younger brother Yoan is also a defender. Zouma is named after Kurt Sloane, Jean-Claude Van Damme's character in the 1989 film Kickboxer, while his middle name Happy reflects an African tradition of using positive words as middle names. Zouma is married to Sandra, with whom he has three children. Zouma is a Muslim and made a pilgrimage to Mecca in 2019.

Animal abuse

On 7 February 2022, footage emerged of Zouma kicking, slapping and throwing objects at his cat, filmed at his home by his brother, Yoan Zouma. He was condemned by both his club (West Ham) and the RSPCA. Zouma apologised and said that despite his actions, his two pet cats were "fine and healthy". West Ham said that they would deal with the matter internally. On 8 February, a French animal welfare organisation, the Brigitte Bardot Foundation, announced that they had filed a complaint against Zouma. On the same day, Essex Police said they had launched an enquiry into the abuse in conjunction with the RSPCA. West Ham manager David Moyes selected Zouma to play in their match against Watford on the same day, despite the controversy. BBC Sport presenter Gary Lineker said he was "shocked and appalled that West Ham played Zouma" against Watford; Chris Packham called the decision to play Zouma an "absolute disgrace". On 9 February, the RSPCA confirmed that Zouma's two cats were taken…