Three Leicester City players have issued a public apology after a newspaper reported they had been filmed in an orgy with a Thai woman, who was allegedly racially abused.

A video obtained by the weekend edition of Britain’s Daily Mirror newspaper allegedly showed the English Premier League club’s defender James Pearson, 22, striker Tom Hopper, 21, and goalkeeper Adam Smith 22, naked in a hotel room.

The players from Leicester, a club owned by Thai businessmen, allegedly filmed Thai women as they performed sex acts upon them, The Sunday Mirror reported.

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One of the men can be heard describing one of the women as “slit eyes”, a racial slur, the newspaper claimed.

The video was said to have been shot while Leicester were touring Thailand as they celebrated avoiding relegation from the lucrative Premier League.

In response, the club issued an apologetic statement on behalf of the young men and promised investigate the matter further.

“Tom Hopper, James Pearson and Adam Smith would like to convey their sincere apologies for their behaviour – to the women involved in the incident, to the club and its owners, to the club’s fans and to their families,” said the statement.

The three players would return home early from the celebratory trip, the statement said.

“Our players at every level are expected to behave as representatives and ambassadors for our football club, both on official club duty and in their personal lives, so we treat their conduct extremely seriously.

“A formal process of investigation will be undertaken with the players in conjunction with their representatives and, as such, no further comment can be made at this stage.”