Cinema VinesAn advertising campaign for the sports‑prediction platform Novig featuring American actress Sydney Sweeney has ignited a firestorm of criticism from female athletes, who claim the ad reduces women in sport to sexual objects. The commercial shows Sweeney in very little clothing, with footballs and other sports gear strategically placed to cover parts of her body. The imagery, according to critics, commodifies a woman’s body and perpetuates the sexualisation of female athletes.
Olympic swimmer Ariarne Titmus, a four‑time gold medalist, posted on Instagram, “I can’t describe how infuriated I feel when I watch this,” adding, “How do we live in a world where monetizing a woman’s body and sexualizing women’s sport is still a thing?” British sprinter Amy Hunt also weighed in after finishing fourth in the 200 metres at the Ultimate Championship in Budapest, saying in a BBC interview, “Sydney Sweeney, this is what women in sport look like. Muscles, hard work, sweat, blood, tears.”
Former U.S. gymnast Gracie Kramer called the ad “infuriating” on Instagram, noting that she has spent her life competing in a sport where female athletes are often over‑sexualised. She posted stories of athletes training with the caption, “What a woman in sports looks like.” Chinese‑German rugby player Sofie Fella added that female athletes serve as role models by breaking free from society’s beauty ideals, calling the ad “disrespectful to every female athlete in the world.”
Novig has yet to respond to requests for comment, and a publicist for Sweeney has also not replied. In a move that may be seen as a nod to the backlash, Sweeney shared a series of covers from ESPN The Magazine’s annual “Body Issue,” which celebrates the diversity of athletes’ bodies with nude or semi‑nude photos.
Sweeney, a two‑time Emmy nominee who produced the 2023 biopic “Christy” about boxer Christy Martin, has faced controversy before. Her 2025 American Eagle campaign, which played on the homophones “jeans” and “genes,” also sparked widespread online debate. The current controversy underscores the growing tension between commercial advertising and the representation of women in sports.
