In September, actress Sydney Sweeney appeared in a national ad for the betting platform Novig, wearing little more than footballs. The campaign drew sharp criticism, including from Olympic swimmer Ariarne Titmus, who called it “a kick in the face to every woman who had dedicated her life to perfecting her craft.” A sequel in October, again featuring Sweeney topless under the slogan “Just sports,” sparked fresh outrage. One commenter asked, “Why do you have to be naked to market sports?”
But the women most affected by such advertising were largely ignored: the growing number of female gamblers. Since the Supreme Court allowed states to legalize sports betting in 2018, the industry has exploded. Americans wagered $166.9 billion last year, and the share of online sports bettors who are women jumped from 26% in 2022 to 35% in 2023, according to the American Gaming Association.
Women are not just the bait in these ads—they are also the customers. The Wheatley Institute surveyed 2,665 American adults this fall and found that 40% of women under 30 had placed a sports bet through an app in the past year, compared to 24% of all women. Nearly a third of young women also reported using prediction markets.
The financial consequences are severe. Elaina Bozzuto, a 30-year-old Connecticut mother, lost up to $200,000 over three years before filing for bankruptcy, as reported by Bloomberg Law. The survey found that one in five women had gambled again to recover losses, one in six had lied about their gambling, and one in eight needed someone to bail them out. Two-thirds of those who deleted a betting app later re-downloaded it.
Women also start from a weaker financial position—only about half described their finances as good or excellent, versus 69% of men. A UC San Diego study of over 700,000 Americans found that 96% of online gamblers lost money over five years.
This convergence in gambling mirrors trends in other vices, like drinking, where the gender gap has nearly closed among younger people. But as scholars of human flourishing, we see gambling undermining relationships, financial security, and mental health. It’s a business that thrives only when most players lose.
Young adults are aware of the risks—half of those under 30 say betting is morally wrong and can lead to addiction—yet 60% still have a betting app on their phones. They learn about gambling from YouTube (42%) and TikTok (27%) far more than from family (17%).
Public health campaigns should meet young people on these platforms and explain why betting is not a reliable way to earn money. Betting apps should carry clear warnings and prompt users to set spending limits before their first deposit, as Britain already requires. Lawmakers should restrict betting ads like they did tobacco ads, which led to a 37% lower risk of starting smoking after the 1998 settlement. Keeping betting ads away from young audiences and off live sports broadcasts is essential.
The debate over Sweeney’s ads focused on their treatment of women athletes. It should also focus on the women being sold the bet. If current trends hold, women could soon gamble as much as men—but equal opportunity to lose is not progress.
Shima Baradaran Baughman is a law professor at BYU and a distinguished fellow at the Wheatley Institute. Stephen Cranney is a data scientist with a Ph.D. in demography and sociology.
