By now, you will have seen the Novig advert, featuring Sydney Sweeney, that has been dominating the headlines. For the few who haven’t, the advert features a predominantly naked Sydney Sweeney, posing with different sports equipment for a “sports trading app”.

The leading question “So you think you know sports?” has one clear agenda: tempt vulnerable young men, via the sexualisation of a movie star, into spending money on online “sports trading”. “Prove it”, are the exact words of Ms Sweeney.

Of course, the advert is undeniably detrimental for, and dehumanising of, women, girls, and women in sports. It sexualises women in an industry that they have been systematically excluded from throughout history, and does so while claiming to be “just sports”. There is nothing “just” about this ad.

It also plays into the vulnerabilities of young men, the target market for online sports betting and trading. While not every man will be influenced by a naked woman to begin gambling online, or increase the gambling they already engage in, the marketing strategy is clear- target those who will. The advert encourages young men who are increasingly jobless (with over 500,000 male NEETs this year) and partnerless (33% of 18-29 year olds have never been in a relationship [YouGov 2026]) to “prove” their status by engaging with the site’s trades. This pipeline is exploitative and effective, converting anxieties and insecurities into profit.

This advert exists as part of a wider ecosystem of harm, in which misogyny, gambling and online harms reinforce one another. This system exploits women's bodies to make money from men. No gender wins. Everyone is damaged. Harms from online influences are already growing. The CPRMB’s hosted All Party Parliamentary Group on Men and Boys has begun an investigation into Online Harms. The CPRMB has also started a major research project into online harms. What we can already say is that interventions like Sweeney’s should be given the red card.

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