Howard Stern Dismisses Outrage Over Sydney Sweeney’s Sports Ad: ‘This Is Great’

Sydney Sweeney‘s latest ad has sparked a debate over how women are portrayed in sports, and Howard Stern is weighing in.

Stern, 72, leaped to the actress’ defense during a recent episode of The Howard Stern Show, The U.S. Sun reported on Monday, September 28. “I watched that TV commercial. Who the [expletive] is bothered by that?” the shock jock said.

The uproar began earlier this month, when Sweeney, 29, posed without clothes for sports prediction market Novig, with pieces of athletic gear strategically placed to keep her covered. A number of Olympians and professional female athletes blasted the campaign, arguing that it misrepresented women’s sports.

Stern wasn’t buying the outrage. “I mean, she’s representing a gambling website, and I’m like, ‘This is great,'” he said, per the outlet. “I think she’s attractive.”

He isn’t the only one cheering Sweeney on. Former pro golfer Paige Spiranac appeared to back the actress after sharing an Instagram carousel of golf-course shots, a gym selfie and more. When a fan joked that she had answered critics who claimed Sweeney was “killing women’s sports,” Spiranac, 33, replied, “god forbid a woman loves her nice cans.” She later quipped, “just golf,” a cheeky nod to the ad’s “just sports” tagline.

Stern’s support arrives during a rocky stretch for his own brand. Fans have panned his new HBO Max series, which trims his weekly Sirius XM broadcast into a 90-minute episode that streams every Thursday. “It’s unwatchable!” one Reddit user wrote.

The overhauled program now airs live only once a week, on Mondays, after layoffs that impacted at least 50 staffers, The U.S. Sun reported. His archival channel, Howard 101, was also replaced by Andy Cohen‘s Radio Andy.

As Globe previously reported, the radio veteran made it clear he isn’t losing sleep over the criticism when he returned from his summer break on Monday, September 14. “If you think I’m a scumbag, you’re probably right,” he said on the show.