On September 9th, sports prediction market Novig launched their Just Sports campaign featuring actress Sydney Sweeney. The advertisement showcased Sweeney wearing little to no clothing, strategically positioned shots and sports equipment covering her body.
Female athletes expressed their outrage with the advertisement online claiming how disrespectful it is to women, specifically women in sports. Four-time Olympic swimming gold medalist Ariarne Titmus shared on Instagram “How do we live in a world where monetizing a woman’s body and sexualizing women’s sport is still a thing?”
Junior Advertising major Jada Chico said “I audibly said out loud ‘Again?’ when I first saw Sydney Sweeney’s face. Then the disgust came when I continued. It doesn’t take much effort to see how much this was pandering to the male gaze.” She added, “I think as a woman I felt sad and conflicted. Sad because of the fact we as a society still rely on women’s body to market products, and conflicted as there are arguments that this can be empowering as Sydney Sweeney had a full say for how she is being depicted.”
In the advertisement, Sweeney said “no betting on wars or deaths and no politics. Just you, your takes and sports.” Before Novig released this advertisement, Kalshi and Polymarket were two companies that largely dominated the prediction market. Novig differs as they are a sports focused platform.
Not only is Sweeney the face of the campaign, but also an equity partner and creative director. It’s no surprise as this is not the first time the actress has been the spotlight in controversial advertisements. Chico also accounts how controversy in marketing is not new and has been proved to be effective with Sweeney’s previous American Eagle ad.
Currently, Novig is the only prediction market with a 21+ age requirement. However, the “Just Sports” campaign itself has no age restriction. Sweeney’s nude body with footballs covering her chest was displayed on billboards in Times Square. Along with the digital advertisement being accessible online on Instagram and Novig’s official website.
Criticism of how the advertisement can negatively reinforce body image to young women, especially young female athletes also emerged. Additionally, the fact that Sweeney wasn’t part of the sports community sparked conversations on how Novig could have used a female athlete instead. The online discourse surrounding this advertisement leads us to question how women’s sports should actually be marketed.
President of the Queens College Volleyball Club Sage Ziyamova said, “Women’s sports should be marketed in a healthy manner that isn’t meant to compare or belittle them or fit them into a narrow perspective, I hope they would market it in a way where women are having fun and playing to their hearts content. Sports, working out and weight are very sensitive topics in social media these days so I hope they would be inclusive and positive about it.”
Chico leaves us off with “I’ve seen many sports photoshoots and magazine covers that focus on the physique of a woman through nudity, emphasizing the sportsmanship and fitness of women’s bodies. While I do like this kind of marketing, I would also love for there to be more attention to the relationships women build with their team mates.” She added, “Many of the wins women players achieve come from the support and brilliance of their team members. Focusing also on the power that women show on the field, like the intellect required to win a game through their strategy, and of course physical effort, would be ideal.”
