Oldham Athletic Responds to Shocking Allegation: Did Footballer Really Knock Woman Out with Chair?

Picture this: a sunny Ibiza poolside, a group of holidaymakers unwinding — and suddenly, chaos erupts. Oldham Athletic’s own Kian Harratt finds himself in the center of a brawl, caught on video throwing a plastic chair that accidentally sends a woman tumbling. Now, aside from wondering if plastic furniture should come with hazard warnings, the footballer’s mixed feelings and somewhat dodgy defense (“she went down a bit easy”) only add spice to the saga. What exactly goes through a striker’s mind when defending a friend turns into a viral controversy? And how does a club handle its star making headlines for all the wrong reasons? Dive into the tangled aftermath as the parties involved juggle apologies, denials, and curious hotel statements that almost rewrite the narrative. Ready to unpack this hot mess with me? LEARN MORE.

Oldham Athletic have released a statement after one of their footballers was involved in a poolside brawl on holiday.

After being captured on video, Kian Harratt was swiftly identified as the man responsible for throwing a plastic chair, which ended up hitting a woman, who fell to the ground.

The clip, which did the rounds on social media, was taken at an Ibiza hotel with the 23-year-old being part of a group that got involved in a scuffle.

Following the incident, Harratt took to TikTok to address the situation, admitting that he felt ‘apologetic and terrible’, before adding that he wasn’t aiming to hit the woman, claiming she ‘went down a bit easy’.

The footballer described the man allegedly responsible for starting the squabble as a ‘bully’ who was ‘6’6 and built like a brick’. He claims the man was making people at the pool ‘feel uncomfortable’ with his behaviour.

Harratt has explained his side of the story on TikTok (Richard Pelham/Getty Images)

He has since responded to these claims, while the hotel also addressed the events of the video with a slightly unusual statement.

Oldham Athletic, the team which employs Haratt, has now addressed the video in a statement to the BBC.

They said that a ‘thorough investigation’ into the situation would be carried out, adding that the club ‘strongly condemns violence of any kind’.

“Until the outcome of that investigation there will be no further comment,” the League Two club stated.

The Marco Polo Hotel in San Antonio said that the fight lasted ‘less than three minutes’, while bizarrely claiming that ‘no chairs were thrown at any guests’, despite the viral footage.

Speaking of the woman who was hit, they stated: “The lady was asked by our security members if she wanted to report to the police and file a complaint, but she said she was OK and she did not want to, that she just slipped and she was fine, and she thanked our security members.”

Harratt claimed on social media that he was simply defending a friend of his in the videos.

The striker made headlines earlier this year, though for all the right reasons, after scoring the National League play-off final winner against Southend United in extra time, which sent Oldham back up to League Two.

The video has gone viral on social media (X/The 92 Bible)

Brandon Watkins, part of the group confronting Harratt and his friends, had a different recollection of events, explaining that he was ‘aggressively splashed’ by one of Harratt’s mates.

He noted that they were ‘throwing balls about’ and that people said they would cause trouble.

“They were just being a nightmare. One lad was winding us up. Kian was sat right next to him and if anything, Kian was provoking him,” Watkins claimed.

After the woman was hit, he claimed to have stayed with the woman, adding: “Would I have done that if I was a bully who was making them uncomfortable?”

LADbible has previously reached out to Kian Harratt’s representatives and Oldham Athletic for comment.