Sky Sports ‘Halo’ Initiative, Designed for Female Sports Fans, Faces Backlash
- therookiereporters
- 6 days ago
- 2 min read
Sky Sports launched a new TikTok channel, Sky Sports Halo, aimed at engaging female sports fans. However, it faces backlash for being patronising, stereotypical, and tone-deaf.
On November 13, 2025, Sky Sports launched a new TikTok channel, Sky Sports Halo, designed specifically to better engage female sports fans.
According to the broadcaster, the dedicated platform is created for women to enjoy and explore content from all sports, while amplifying female voices and perspectives.
The channel is branded as the ‘lil sis of Sky Sports’, and is promoted as a place focusing on culture, community and connection. However, the launch has drawn backlash from a significant portion of its target audience.
The complaints centre around the branding, tone, and content of the new page, which many say appears to be patronising, stereotypical, or tone-deaf when addressing female sports fans.
Sky Sports Halo is said to use its platform to ‘champion female athletes’, but nearly half of its first 11 videos are about men’s sport. This raises questions as to what the channel’s purpose really is.
The TikTok channel features videos plastered with love hearts, pink text, and a dainty tone.
Many have argued that women do not need a separate or specially tailored channel to engage with sport, stressing that women already consume mainstream sports coverage without the need for gender-targeted packaging.
Others also question whether female athletes can’t be celebrated on the main Sky Sports page, instead deciding to create a different, gender-specific page. Some have suggested that this approach further reinforces a divide between male and female athletes.
Several people have voiced that only a few of the videos on the Sky Spots Halo account are available to them, while others can view all videos.
Following this criticism, Sky Sports has not made an official statement yet.
Article written by Jana Van Nieuwenborgh
