Female athletes are criticizing an advertisement for sports-prediction platform Novig featuring Sydney Sweeney, saying it sexualizes women and undercuts the work required to be taken seriously in sports. The campaign poses Sweeney with sports equipment and very little clothing, because apparently the marketing meeting began in 1987 and no one found the exit.
The criticism comes from people who know the problem
Olympic swimmer Ariarne Titmus, British sprinter Amy Hunt, former gymnast Gracie Kramer and rugby player Sofie Fella are among those who objected. Their complaint is not that women must hide their bodies. It is that women's athletic achievement is routinely treated as secondary to whether a campaign can turn them into scenery.
Sweeney later posted images from ESPN's former Body Issue, which celebrated athletes' bodies in a context centered on strength and performance. Critics say that is precisely the distinction the Novig campaign misses.
Provocation is easy; relevance is harder
Associated Press detailed the backlash on September 15, 2026. Novig and Sweeney's publicist had not responded to AP requests for comment.
Gen X lived through beer ads where the women appeared to have wandered in from an entirely different television show. We can recognize the formula. A sports company can be playful, sexy and memorable without suggesting female athleticism needs a celebrity striptease to hold attention. If the ad's goal was conversation, congratulations. If it was respect for women's sports, the scoreboard is less flattering.
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