Ariarne Titmus says hate outweighed support after she criticised Sydney Sweeney’s Novig ad, while golfer Charley Hull has defended the actress.
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Key Takeaways
Ariarne Titmus says she received roughly twice as much hate as support after criticising Sydney Sweeney’s Novig advertisement.
British golfer Charley Hull has defended Sweeney, arguing that the actress was doing her job.
The disagreement extends a campaign controversy that CCN previously tracked through athlete criticism, competing advertisements and Novig’s claimed customer growth.
Olympic swimming champion Ariarne Titmus says criticism of Sydney Sweeney’s betting advertisement brought her roughly twice as much hate as support, as British golfer Charley Hull offers a contrasting defense of the actress.
The comments shift attention toward the response faced by athletes who challenged Novig’s campaign, which featured a naked Sweeney posing with sports equipment covering her body.
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Titmus revisited her objections on the Something To Talk About podcast, in an episode published Oct. 24, saying the supportive messages were accompanied by a larger hostile response.
“I probably got double the amount of hate,” she told the podcast.
Despite the backlash, the four-time Olympic gold medallist maintained that the campaign raised questions about how women are portrayed in sport.
“I think my initial reaction was very on the surface anger, but having thought about it more and more, it’s a lot more of a deeper thought towards the ad,” she added.
“Initially, I thought that it was a kick in the face to any woman that took sports seriously.”
She continued that she felt “sad” for Sydney Sweeney, arguing that she shouldn’t have to use her nude body to sell something because “she’s got a beautiful face.”
Charley Hull Defends Syndey Sweeney’s Role
Meanwhile, Hull approached the campaign differently.
Speaking to Heavy Sports in an interview on Oct. 22, the British golfer argued that Sweeney was appearing as an actress and model, rather than presenting herself as a representative of women’s sport.
“That is quite literally her job,” Hull said.
She added:
“Sometimes a pretty woman is just a pretty woman in an advert.”
Hull also questioned whether athletes criticizing the advertisement were applying consistent standards to revealing photographs they posted themselves.
“But if you look at half of them women that are complaining about it, you go on their Instagram pages, they’re posting in bikinis and stuff,” Hull continued.
“If they’ve got that opinion about Sydney Sweeney, surely they shouldn’t be on their Instagram posting in a bikini because they’re not an actress/model.”
Two Ads Put Sydney Sweeney at the Center of the Debate
The controversy began with Novig’s September campaign, which featured Sweeney posing with sports equipment covering her otherwise naked body under the slogan “Just Sports.”
As CCN previously reported, the imagery drew criticism from athletes who argued that it reduced women’s sport to physical appearance rather than sporting achievement.
“There’s insider trading on dictators dying and armies of bots manipulating it all,” Sweeney says in the follow-up.
The campaign prompted a response from Powerade, whose “Never Just Sports” advertising featured women demonstrating their athletic abilities.
Novig has rejected suggestions that Sweeney was portraying a female athlete, with CEO Jacob Fortinsky saying her role was to communicate the platform’s focus on sports.
Despite the pushback, the firm claimed first-time depositors increased by more than 218% during a 20-day period surrounding the campaign launch.
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Kurt Robson is a London-based reporter at CCN, specialising in the fast-moving worlds of crypto and emerging technology. He began his career covering local news in Cornwall after graduating from Falmouth University with First Class Honours in Journalism. There, he cut his teeth on everything from council meetings to missing swans.
He quickly rose through the ranks to become a frontline journalist at several of the UK’s leading national newspapers. Over the years, he has interviewed musicians and celebrities, reported from courtrooms and crime scenes, and secured multiple front-page exclusives.
Following the upheaval of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kurt shifted his focus to technology journalism—just ahead of the AI boom. With a natural curiosity and a trained eye for emerging trends, he has found a new rhythm in reporting on innovation.
At CCN, Kurt's work focuses on the cutting edge of crypto, blockchain, AI, and the evolving digital world. Drawing on his background in people-first reporting and his deep interest in disruptive tech, Kurt delivers stories that are insightful, entertaining, and human-centric.
