Brazil team at the centre of World Cup controversy after manhandling a cat

The Brazil side are the favourites to win the World Cup, but they’ve found themselves at the centre of a bizarre controversy at the tournament.

An incident occurred during a press conference out in Qatar, which saw a media representative in the team set up throw a cat off a table.

One of the team’s star players Vinícius Júnior was answering questions from journalists when it was disrupted by the unexpected feline guest.

Vinícius laughed at the cat before the media rep grabbed it and threw it off the desk.

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The animal was visibly unharmed and was seen later in the conference hanging out on the desk once again, but the action sparked gasps from the people in the room at the time.

Footage of the cat being thrown from the table has racked up millions of views since it took place earlier this week, and people have criticised the media rep for his handling of the animal.

We have questions. How did a cat get into the press area in the first place? Why did the guy just chuck it off the table? Will the cat be attending every press conference from now on?

“He did not YEET the cat like that omgggggg…Bruh my jaw is on the floor,” one wrote on social media.

“WHERE IS PETA???” another said.

The official PETA account then tweeted in response to the clip: “What’s this guy’s problem? Next time he encounters a cat, he should smile & laugh like Brazil star @vinijr instead of being so rude & rough.

“We hope someone is looking after this sweet cat who is probably homeless—just like so many others.”

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