Actor Sydney Sweeney’s new advertisement for a sports platform has been garnering headlines after it received backlash from women athletes accusing the actress of allegedly sexualising women’s sports.
The Euphoria‘ actress recently stripped down for a new ad for sports trading app Novig, going nude and covering parts of her with a variety of sports equipment. Just days after the ad dropped, several athletes and Olympic champions took to their social media to speak out against the campaign.
British athlete Lucy Davis shared a video on her Instagram handle to criticise the new advertisement about women’s sports featuring Sydney Sweeney.
She wrote, “I don’t know what Sydney Sweeney was doing, but it’s 2026. Stop sexualising women in sport. I think it’s rallied the girls to come together.”
According to Variety, Ariarne Titmus, a former Australian swimming champion and four-time Olympic gold medal winner, wrote “I can’t describe how infuriated I feel when I watch this.”
Responding to the backlash, Sydney Sweeney defended her decision to star in the sports advertisement, which has since sparked controversy.
In a statement on the Novig website, Sweeney said: “The campaign was about embracing a fun idea. The concept is simple: cut through the noise and put the focus entirely on sports. The campaign brings that idea to life with confidence, humour and a playful edge.”
The star also appeared to respond to the backlash by posting to her Instagram story a series of covers from the ESPN Body Issue, which featured naked athletes.
According to Variety, the Novig commercial comes just over a year after American Eagle’s hugely controversial “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans” campaign,” which prompted a wave of criticism for appearing to use the language of eugenics.
In a now-deleted video, Sweeney said: “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair colour, personality, and even eye colour. My jeans are blue.”
Months after the American Eagle ad, Sweeney responded by saying she was “surprised by the reaction” and that she was “against hate and divisiveness.”
On the work front, the actress was last seen in the film Housemaid. It was released in 2025. The sequel of the film has been confirmed by the makers.
Source: Khaleej Times