What’s the matter?
Sweeney recently starred in a 58-second “Just Sports” advertisement for Novig, a US-based sports prediction and betting platform.
In the advertisement, she appears mostly nude, using sporting equipment such as tennis rackets, footballs, basketballs, baseballs and hockey sticks to cover parts of her body while pretending to participate in different sports.
The ad repeatedly uses the word “sports” as Sweeney moves through various sporting scenarios. At one point, she appears topless on a basketball hoop, while the commercial ends with her topless on a pool table saying, “You can’t trade this, I just look good here.”
Why did the advertisement become controversial?
The campaign drew criticism particularly from female athletes, who argued that it sexualises women in sport instead of highlighting their athletic ability, dedication and achievements.
Olympic swimming champion Ariarne Titmus called the campaign “an absolute joke” and said it was a “kick in the face” to women who dedicate their lives to sport.
British sprinter Amy Hunt, who finished fourth in the 200m at the Ultimate Championship in Budapest, directly responded to Sweeney, saying, “Sydney Sweeney, this is what women in sport look like.”
Olympic cyclist Sophie Capewell said women should be seen for what they can do, rather than simply for how they look.
Gymnast Gracie Kramer also joined the response by posting a video of herself competing with the message, “This is what a woman in sport looks like.”
How did Sydney Sweeney respond?
Sweeney did not issue a verbal statement or apology over the criticism.
Instead, 'The Housemaid' actor appeared to respond through her Instagram Stories by sharing photographs from ESPN's “Body Issue”, which has featured elite athletes posing nude.
Among the athletes featured in the images she shared were Serena Williams, Ronda Rousey, Megan Rapinoe, Caroline Wozniacki, Rob Gronkowski and Karl-Anthony Towns.
Her posts were widely interpreted as Sweeney pushing back against the criticism and pointing to the fact that elite athletes themselves have previously posed nude in sports publications.