Sydney Sweeney has nothing to do with sports. So what is it about her ad that is making us so mad?

Over the last few days, my algorithm has been inundated with clapbacks against Sydney Sweeney. The U.S. actor was featured in a commercial for Novig, a sports betting company in which she is an equity partner and is using her best assets for the role in the ad. 

She is positioned, mostly topless and legs open, with footballs or basketballs covering certain parts. She speaks slowly with the usual tropes and rolls her eyes emphatically describing all the sports you can trade on: football, hockey, soccer, basketball. The focus is certainly not the racquets, helmets or clubs; it is her own, er, equipment. She coyly asks: “You think you know sports? Prove it.” 

The women’s sports ecosystem understood the assignment and responded with an intensity for the ages, criticizing Sweeney for sexualizing women athletes. I kept seeing video replies on Instagram and TikToks of athletes from Canada and all over the world. Canadian figure skater Maddie Schizas's post struck me because it layered Sweeney’s voice over clips of Schizas training and competing as well as moments from her daily routine as an Olympian. 

I saw AFC Toronto’s Nyota Katembo’s post in which she underlines her own tenacity and strength on and off the pitch. Canadian ski jumper Alex Loutitt posted statistics on the amount of girls dropping out of sports in adolescence, why girls quit, and how a majority of women in leadership positions played competitive sport. 

Canadian high diver Molly Carlson chimed in with commentary about body image and sport and noted the challenges that come with being a high-profile woman athlete. To say it was powerful is an understatement. 

Sexy Sydney Sweeney ad triggers angry backlash — again

Canadian Mohawk Olympian Waneek Horn-Miller also