• American actor accused of sexualising women’s sports

• British sprinter Amy Hunt leads storm of protest

The US actor Sydney Sweeney is facing a backlash from female Olympians and other athletes, who have accused her of demeaning and sexualising women’s sports by appearing in a controversial advert for a sports prediction company.

In the viral commercial for Novig, which was viewed more than 22 million times in the first two days of its release, Sweeney’s nude body is covered by footballs, basketballs, and other sports equipment, as she tells users they can bet on “just sports”. After saying “sports” nine times, she appears topless on a pool table, before saying: “You can’t trade this, I just look good here.”

The actor’s latest promotion has stirred outrage but will no doubt be good for the prediction markets hoping to lure in young men

Prediction markets are a cynical business.

Many customers will lose money, and the real product may just be the delightful dopamine hit that comes in that brief window between placing a bet and its outcome – which is statistically more likely to be a disappointment than a victory. So the bettor has to think they are buying more than their own fleecing.