Australian Olympic athletes have joined international criticism of a sports betting advertisement featuring actress Sydney Sweeney. The campaign shows Sweeney wearing little or no clothing while miming sports including tennis, golf, baseball and ice hockey, while promoting the ability to bet on “just sports”.
The advertisement has been viewed more than 33 million times on Instagram, according to ABC News Australia. Critics say its presentation of Sweeney’s body sexualises sport and undermines efforts by women athletes to have their skill and achievements recognised.
Four-time Olympic gold medallist Ariarne Titmus called the campaign “an absolute joke” and said she felt infuriated watching it. She argued that it was disrespectful to women who had devoted themselves to sport and to those who valued competition for its teamwork, dedication, excellence and unity.
Other Australian athletes also spoke out. Swimmer Lani Pallister said she had “truly no words”, while Hockeyroos goalkeeper Joc Bartram said the advertisement was out of touch and complained that women’s sport was once again being sexualised. Water polo silver medallist Tilly Kearns and athletes including Bree Masters, Lauren Ryan and Liz Clay posted material intended to highlight women’s sporting ability.
The Australian Institute of Sport joined the response by posting “THIS is sport” alongside images of women athletes. American gymnast Gracie Kramer helped start a wider online trend with a post contrasting the advertisement with her depiction of what a woman in sport looks like. Australian boxer Skye Nicolson said the backlash might give the betting company the attention it wanted, but still called for companies to stop sexualising women in sport.
Sweeney appeared to respond by sharing images from ESPN’s Body issue, which has featured nude elite athletes including Serena Williams, Ronda Rousey, Rob Gronkowski and Karl-Anthony Towns. ABC News Australia also noted that Sweeney had faced previous criticism over an American Eagle advertising campaign, but the supplied report does not include a direct response from the betting company.