A provocative advertising campaign featuring actress Sydney Sweeney has exploded across social media, drawing millions of views and fierce criticism from the woke movement who accuse it of “sexualizing women’s sports”. The Novig sports-betting ad shows the Euphoria star mostly nude, with her body strategically covered by footballs, basketballs, tennis rackets, and other equipment as she repeats the word “sports” and declares the platform is “just sports” – no politics or wars.

Released in mid-September 2026, the one-minute video quickly surpassed 40 million views. British sprinter Amy Hunt led the backlash after a race, stating: “Sydney Sweeney, this is what women in sport look like: 21.4. Muscles. Hard work, blood, sweat, tears.” Gymnast Gracie Kramer and others posted competition footage under the slogan “this is what a woman in sport looks like,” generating over a million likes. Feminist critics, including Olympian Tilly Kearns, called the campaign a “step backwards” that hypersexualizes female athletes and undermines years of progress toward being taken seriously.

Sweeney responded by sharing ESPN Body Issue photos of nude athletes such as Serena Williams, Ronda Rousey, and Megan Rapinoe, highlighting the double standards. Supporters framed the ad as empowered self-expression and a rejection of restrictive woke advertising norms that often downplay conventional attractiveness. The controversy echoes earlier debates around Sweeney’s American Eagle “great jeans/genes” campaign.

The episode underscores ongoing culture-war tensions: one side sees objectification that cheapens women’s achievements; the other sees hypocrisy in celebrating athlete nudes in magazines while condemning a celebrity ad. All publicity has boosted Novig’s visibility amid a crowded prediction-market field.