Sydney Sweeney, best known for her role in Euphoria, has clambered to the top of internet headlines in the last week regarding her divisive advert. The content itself — Sweeney portrayed naked with only various sports equipment covering her body — proves so controversial that it is all anyone is talking about, and the gambling and sports betting company behind the advertisement has been rendered irrelevant.
At first, there seemed to be a general consensus that the over-sexualisation of a woman’s body in association with sports only furthers harmful stereotypes about women in sports. American gymnast Gracie Kramer was one of the first people to respond to Sweeney’s advert by kickstarting a social media trend where a montage of her gymnastic feats played behind the text “this is what a woman in sport looks like.” The trend has since gone viral with social media flooding with videos ranging from Olympic athletes and prominent figures in women’s sports to amateurs and young girls all showcasing their own success and skills.
However, the strong reaction has not been shared by all; on the other end of social media, people are questioning whether Sweeney’s advert even offers a commentary on women’s sports at all or if it should just be taken at face value for what it is — a marketing tactic by a sports betting company. Controversial advertisements that take up global discourse and thus bring along attention are not a new phenomenon and Sweeney herself has been caught up in them before with American Eagle in 2025. Nonetheless, what makes the current situation stand out is the fact that all the focus is on Sydney Sweeney and how she is being marketed rather than any light being shed on the company itself; their video is getting publicity but they are not receiving the recognition. Sweeney’s appearance holds little relation to the marketed product with her presence instead used to lure in a largely male dominated audience.
Thus, it can be easy to see why so many people condemn the advertisement. In simplest terms, it is catered blatantly to the male gaze with the subsequent underlying narrative that sports lies exclusively as a man’s domain. In a world where women’s sports and athletes are already unfairly perceived as inferior, advertisements that emphasise a woman’s physical appearance rather than the sporting capability of their body reverts the progress that women’s sports has made towards equal treatment.
“SydneySweeney-TIFF2025-01-Cropped” by JoshPopov is licensed under CC BY 4.0.
