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Female Athletes Cry Foul Over Sydney Sweeney's Naughty Sports Prediction Market Spot
Stoking controversy must be in her genes
Sydney Sweeney’s caught up in a brand-new advertising controversy. And this time, she didn’t even bother to put on her pants.
The Euphoria star appears nude, more or less, with footballs and other athletic equipment hiding sensitive areas in a minute-long spot for Novig, a sports prediction market where users compete against each other.
That brand, Sweeney begins, straddling a basketball hoop in the altogether, “is just sports. So, they wanted to show … just sports.“
Syd shows quite a lot more than that, however, working the concept for all its worth. She embraces her image and plays to the crowd, tossing the fans (and us clicks-crazed media types) a wink-wink naughty souvenir.
Predictably, such shenanigans are causing a stir, with luminaries like four-time Australian gold medalist swimmer Ariarne Titmus and American gymnast Gracie Kramer among those decrying the sexualized approach in no uncertain terms.
In fact, Kramer posted a video of herself in competition, captioned “Idk what Sydney Sweeney was doing, but this is what a woman in sports looks like.”
Thus far, neither Sweeney nor Novig—where the actress holds an equity stake—have directly commented on the fracas.
Sydney caused a similar stir last year, when she headlined American Eagle ads that riffed on “jeans” and “genes.” Viewers raged against the brand , claiming blond-haired, blue-eyed Sweeney had invoked eugenic superiority. (The pearl clutching actually began a few weeks earlier, when Dr. Squatch made soap from her bathwater.)
As 2026 began, she staged a high-profile stunt for her lingerie brand, scaling the Hollywood sign and risking arrest. Naturally, John Law took no action, leaving Sweens free to display her assets for Novig.
Of course, we’ve all seen this kind of exposure before. For a few days, the push will produce priceless PR for an obscure brand. Novig might drop a non-apology and/or pull the ads.
Ultimately, the dust-up will go the way of all flesh, receding into our collective memory until the next time Sweeney decides to put skin in the game.
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