Nike launched its first Super Bowl commercial in 27 years last month, featuring a prominent lineup of female athletes. However, the ad faced backlash due to the company’s position on supporting transgender athletes in women’s sports. The one-minute commercial included stars like Caitlin Clark, Sabrina Ionescu, JuJu Watkins, Sha’Carri Richardson, and Jordan Chiles, showcasing various slogans such as “You can’t flex, so flex,” “You can’t fill a stadium, so fill that stadium,” “You can’t be emotional, so be emotional,” and “You can’t win, so win.”
XX-XY Athletics, a brand dedicated to advocating for female athletes and ensuring fairness in women’s sports, released a video featuring several athletes reacting to Nike’s ad. Powerlifter April Hutchinson, who faced a two-year suspension from the Canadian Powerlifting Union for opposing a trans athlete’s participation in women’s competitions, criticized the flexing message in the ad. “I’ve never been told that I can’t flex or can’t do this or that,” Hutchinson stated.
Sia Liilii, the captain of the University of Nevada women’s volleyball team, who opposed her school’s decision to compete against a trans athlete last season, felt the ad missed the mark. “That Nike ad kinda represented old feminism. I don’t think anyone is telling women in sports they can’t champion their sport,” she explained. Other athletes in the video described the ad as “fake feminism” and accused Nike of ignoring the real issues at hand.
The core message from XX-XY Athletics emphasized that women can indeed be confident, emotional, and successful in sports, but they struggle to speak out on the critical issue of protecting women’s sports. “‘Just Do It’ – that’s your slogan, isn’t it Nike? Just do it. Stand up for women. It’s the easiest thing in the world to do,” sports civil rights advocate Riley Gaines concluded in the video.
Following the release of the Nike ad, Jennifer Sey, a former U.S. gymnast and founder/CEO of XX-XY Athletics, criticized Nike on social media, stating, “You’re so full of it. The only thing female athletes are told they can’t do is stand up for the integrity of their sports, for keeping men out of women’s sports. Literally, that’s the only thing.” Veteran sports broadcaster Michele Tafoya also expressed her discontent with the ad.
