Women athletes have taken to TikTok to protest a sports ‘gambling’ app advertisement featuring a naked Sydney Sweeney, which they say belittles what they have achieved.
The highly sexualised Novig ad, which shows Sweeney covering parts of her body with sports equipment, has sparked a wave of criticism with social media users expressing disgust at the campaign.
“By far the worst commercial i have ever seen,” commented one, while another wrote: “Setting feminism back hundreds of years.”
Sports presenter Kat Sasso, told Central News: “I don’t think campaigns like this will affect how women and girls perceive their place in sport, but I do believe it reiterates the very old and archaic belief that women don’t know a thing about sports and don’t have anything valuable to add to the conversation.”
To counter the advertisement’s message, women have been posting montages of their achievements in sport, including their experiences as athletes, teammates and professionals in the industry.
Australian Olympic water polo player Tilly Kearns was one athlete posting, captioning the video: “I absolutely fking hate Sydney Sweeny’s new sports ad.”
@tillykearns Like what are we doing…. So much worse than I imagined
Within 24 hours of being posted the TikTok had gained 9.4 million views and 1.6 million likes.
“She [Sydney Sweeney] is a woman in a sports context dressed as all these different kinds of athletes which is communicating the idea that in order to get male attention and male money is through desirability and sex,” Kearns added.
“In 2026 when a brand wants male eyeballs on a product the default is still sexualising women and selling sex.”
Sports journalist Kenzie Williams said: “The ad reinforces stereotypes that women don’t truly understand sport and are only valued for their appearance, which undermines their hard work.
“My biggest concern is the message it sends to young girls. They should be able to see themselves as athletes, journalists, coaches, photographers, or passionate fans.”
UN Women Australia research has found 88 per cent of sports fans regard professional women athletes as impactful role models for young women.
It found around half of the global population followed women’s sport in 2024, increasing from 45 per cent in 2022, demonstrating a growing interest and investment in female athletes and competitions.
It feels like it discredits all the hard work women have to do in order to be taken seriously and seen as credible.
Kat Sasso, sports presenter
“In today’s society where things on social media go viral so quickly, it [the ad] takes so much attention away from sport itself,” said Sasso.
“I think it is just taking so many steps back from everything every single woman in sport has worked so hard to push through, from athletes to journalists and everyone in the middle. It feels like it discredits all the hard work women have to do in order to be taken seriously and seen as credible.”
However, not everyone agrees the advertisement is problematic.
Political commentator Brett Cooper defended the campaign, arguing Sweeney is “simply owning her own body and sexuality”.
“She is shattering the glass ceiling in the sports betting industry considering that she is a partial owner of this company and creatively directed the ad in which she is naked,” he said.
Novig, a peer-to-peer sports prediction and trading app in which users bet against each other instead of a traditional bookmaker, is the second advertiser Sweeney has caused controversy with, after an American Eagle jeans ad last year was accused of pushing a white supremacy message.
Responding to the backlash, Sweeney defended the Novig ad as lighthearted.
“[It’s trying to] cut through the noise and put the focus entirely on sports,” she said. “The campaign brings that idea to life with confidence, humour and a playful edge.”
Main Image: Matilda Kearns and Sydney Sweeney screenshots.
