Sophie Cunningham Critiques Sydney Sweeney's Controversial Ad
Sophie Cunningham didn’t dance around it. She’s disappointed by Sydney Sweeney’s latest ad — and she’s “not surprised” either.
On the Sept. 17 episode of her podcast “No Hesitation,” the Indiana Fever guard unpacked the reaction to Sweeney’s campaign for sports trading app Novig, a spot that has triggered a wave of criticism across women’s sports and beyond. Cunningham said her phone lit up with texts, DMs and comments asking for her take. She finally gave it.
The ad shows the “Euphoria” star mostly nude, her body strategically covered by sports equipment — two footballs here, a basketball hoop there. The imagery, paired with the gambling tie-in, has drawn sharp responses from athletes including artistic gymnast Gracie Kramer and runner Mary McCarthy, who see it as another step backward in how women in and around sport are portrayed.
Cunningham understands why people are upset. She just isn’t shocked.
“I have so many takes,” she said on the show. “But like it's just, first of all like, does she even gamble on sports? It's just so unauthentic. You know what I mean? Like, am I surprised of how she represented the brand? No. That's what she's made her whole career off.”
Cunningham didn’t launch a personal attack on Sweeney. In fact, she went out of her way to separate the actress from the broader debate.
“And hey, don't get me wrong, like I like her,” Cunningham continued. “Everyone knows she is beautiful. She is hot. She clearly has my chest ... And so like, I really like her. And you know what, she sticks to her guns, and she does her thing and she's her, so like props to her.”
That didn’t change her view of the campaign itself. Asked directly if she liked the ad, Cunningham was blunt: “Not really.” She told co-host Drew Hanlen she’s “not surprised” by the creative direction because it leans into what Sweeney is “known for.”
The formula, Cunningham pointed out, is hardly new.
“Why are girls mad? That is literally what she does. Why is anyone mad? It is a gambling ad. Men, sports, pretty much naked women – like of course that's going to draw attention,” she said. “Again, do I agree with it? Uh, morally, I think it's kind of weird but like to each their own. Go do your thing, sis.”
Drawing a line between the ad and women’s sport
While social media framed the controversy as another battle over how female athletes are represented, Cunningham pushed back on the idea that Sweeney’s spot is an attack on women in sport.
“I don't think the ad was coming for women in sport,” she said. For her, the unexpected upside has been watching the response from real athletes who have stepped into the conversation with their own images and messages.
“I'm really loving seeing all these girls who are powerful, strong, showing young girls what it looks like to actually be an athlete,” Cunningham said. She highlighted the bodies that rarely make it into glossy gambling ads: “They're muscly, their thighs touch, they have broad shoulders, they might be taller than the average girl and probably the average boy, but you know what, I think that's what it is. Like, you gotta embrace your power.”
Cunningham acknowledged that, at first glance, Sweeney’s ad can feel like a slap in the face to women who have spent years grinding for respect in locker rooms, front offices and boardrooms.
“It could kind of deflate women because it's like we've worked so hard to get a little bit of respect around here,” she admitted.
But she drew a clear boundary. In her view, Sweeney’s brand of sexuality-driven marketing lives in a different lane than the daily work of female athletes.
“When you really think about it, it's like, ‘Screw it, let that girl go do her thing,’” Cunningham said. “We can still, this has nothing to do with us.”
The debate around the Novig campaign will roll on, with familiar battle lines: sex appeal versus authenticity, attention versus respect, clicks versus credibility. Cunningham has staked out her ground — critical of the ad, clear-eyed about the industry, and intent on making sure that, whatever the noise, women who actually play the games keep defining what power looks like.
