By Wilson Adekumola
Sky Sports has decided to shut down its recently launched TikTok channel, Halo, following widespread criticism online, with posts on the account labelled as “patronising” and “sexist.”
In a statement shared on social media on Saturday night, the broadcaster admitted it “didn’t get it right” and confirmed it would be “stopping all activity” on the account.
The channel, announced just days earlier on Thursday, was intended to be an “inclusive, dedicated platform for women to enjoy and explore content from all sports, while amplifying female voices and perspectives.”
However, social media users condemned the “little sister” account, pointing out content that referenced “hot girl walks” and matcha.
At launch, Sky described Halo’s mission as “to build a welcoming community for female fans, whether casual or committed, through fun, trend-led, and relatable content.”
One post featured Manchester City players Rayan Cherki and Erling Haaland, showing the latter scoring against Bournemouth, with the caption: “How the matcha + hot girl walk combo hits.” Critics argued such posts were “infantilising” and undermined years of work to highlight women’s sport.
Emily Trees, 23, expressed her concern to BBC Newsbeat about Halo calling itself the “little sister” of Sky Sports, calling it a “really damaging” phrase.
She said, “We’ve spent the last 50 years trying to come away from the stereotypes around women’s sport, and trying to make women’s sport seen as an entity in itself rather than just as an extension of what men can do. We deserve our own space, something that’s ours. We don’t need to be the ‘little sister’ to anyone.”
GirlsontheBall, a well-known platform covering women’s football, also shared their disappointment on X, “Have many thoughts which I will get to when not under a mountain of writing but all I can ask is why? The branding (one day can we please be past the pink/peach stage?!), the premise, the copy…”
Sports fan Millie Jones, 27, said she didn’t see the need for a separate space for women, telling BBC Newsbeat, “As a sports fan, I’ve consumed generic Sky Sports media for the entirety of the time that I’ve been into sport. I don’t need a pink, glittery sidepiece to the normal content.”
One user described Halo as one of the “worst concepts” they had ever seen, adding, “So condescending. Creating a dumbed down sports channel for women is unbelievably sexist. Incredible that it was approved and that it’s still live.”
Some social media users even created spoof posts of Halo’s content, which circulated widely. Despite targeting women, many of the sports stars featured on the account were male.
Andy Gill, head of social media and audience development at Sky Sports, initially expressed excitement about the launch on LinkedIn, stating he “couldn’t be prouder and more excited about [Halo’s] launch.” But by Saturday night, Sky had reassessed the channel.
Most of Halo’s posts have been deleted, leaving only a brief statement from Sky, “Our intention for Halo was to create a space alongside our existing channel for new, young, female fans. We’ve listened. We didn’t get it right. As a result we’re stopping all activity on this account. We’re learning and remain as committed as ever to creating spaces where fans feel included and inspired.”
The BBC contacted Sky for further comment, but the broadcaster had nothing more to add.
