Bayern Munich star Thomas Muller has been accused of allowing horses in his care to perform ‘unnatural sexual acts’ by PETA.
Issues arose after Muller announced that his horse D’Avie sustained an injury ahead of breeding season – something which the animal rights organisation argue was ‘preventable and unnecessary’.
Alongside his wife Lisa, who is a horse trainer and competes in events, the couple have been running a horse farm in Germany – where they sell the frozen horse semen for €200 (£167.55).
In a statement this week, Muller explained: ‘Unfortunately, we have bad news. Our D’Avie will not be available in the next few months. Unfortunately, he slipped during a test attempt to prepare for breeding season and fell dramatically on his side.
‘He sustained an injury to the hoof area and will need complete rest for the next few months. He’s a tough guy, and he could have been worse.’
That in turn caused PETA spokesperson Jana Hoger to speak out and brandish the practices that led to the injury as ‘unnecessary’.
The statement said: ‘It is horrible that self-proclaimed horse lovers force animals in their care to perform unnatural sexual acts to profit from it.
‘The injuries D’Avie suffered under the supervision of Lisa and Thomas Müller were preventable and unnecessary.’
There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by Thomas Muller or his wife. Sportsmail have contacted Bayern Munich for comment but are as of yet received no comment.
The debacle comes shortly after West Ham’s Kurt Zouma came under fire after a video of the Frenchman abusing his pet cat went viral last week.
The French defender was condemned by his club, the RSPCA and other animal welfare groups on Tuesday after a video emerged of him on Monday night dropping, kicking and slapping his pet cat.
The centre-back featured for West Ham against Watford and was also named in the starting lineup against Leicester but had to withdraw from the latter fixture due to illness.
Zouma was hit with the maximum fine of two weeks’ wages by his club – £250,000, which will be donated to animal welfare charities.