Nike called out for Dylan Mulvaney ad: Why brands are failing when it comes to trans representation in campaigns

The Internet has been abuzz this week over Nike's new campaign starring trans TikTok star Dylan Mulvaney after the star posted that she was the company's newest paid brand ambassador for its women's line of leggings and sports bras.

In response to the ad, transgender athlete Caitlyn Jenner took to Twitter to call the partnership between Nike and Mulvaney "an outrage". This comes just about seven years after Jenner herself landed a H&M sportswear endorsement. 

“As someone that grew up in awe of what Phil Knight did, it is a shame to see such an iconic American company go so woke!” she tweeted. “We can be inclusive but not at the expense of the mass majority of people and have some decency while being inclusive. This is an outrage.”

Jenner added that that there was a double standard on the difference in the treatment of Allyson Felix by Nike and Mulvaney now. Felix is a retired American track and field athlete who split from the brand reportedly because she was disrespected by the brand and discriminated against because she was pregnant. Nike allegedly asked Felix in 2018 to take a 70% pay cut recently when the star announced she was pregnant.

Jenner noted that the New York Post "entirely misrepresented" her tweet and the "context" of her outrage. Jenner added that there is "nothing hypocritical" about her H&M collaboration though she did not elaborate besides adding that she has a long history of athletic endorsements. 

In light of the news, MARKETING-INTERACTIVE decided to take a look back at some of the (admittedly few) transgender athletes who have fronted sports-related campaigns besides Jenner and Mulvaney and to explore why exactly transgender representation in ads continues to remain low.

Don't miss: Caitlyn Jenner slams Nike for using trans woman to promote sports line

1. Chris Mosier for Nike

In 2016, Nike kicked off its campaign, Unlimited Courage, starring duathlete Chris Mosier who is the first known openly transgender athlete who has earned a spot on a US men's national team. Mosier's debut marked the first time Nike featured a transgender athlete in one of its ad campaigns and the first time it sponsored a transgender athlete. 

The campaign itself featured everyday athletes who were pushing themselves in order to achieve their sporting dreams. The three-part series aired during the Olympic Games at the time. 

2. Patricio Manuel for Everlast

Transgender professional boxer Patricio Manuel is the first transgender boxer to compete professionally and was also the face of Everlast's "Be First" campaign. Manuel first began competing as a USA National Amateur Boxing Champion while he was still a woman. 

However, a shoulder injury during the Olympic qualifying led to him finally making the decision to transition, a move he knew would put his sporting career on hold. Not knowing if he would compete again, he went on with the transition and became the first trans boxer to compete in the paid professional ranks, according to Everlast.

The campaign celebrated Manuel and his journey to becoming a transgender champion in 2019. 

3. Tiffany Abreu for adidas

Volleyball star Tiffany Abreu is the first trans woman to play in the Brazil Superliga and was also one of the pioneers of transgender athletes fronting massive ad campaigns.

In 2021, Abreu was the face of adidas' Impossible Is Nothing campaign. The campaign showcased groundbreaking moments in sporting history and focused on Abreu's rise to the top of one of the most competitive and respected volleyball leagues in the world. 

The lack of representation a societal problem 

While the tide is certainly changing when it comes to transgender representation in major ad campaigns, there is still a lot of hesitancy when it comes to brands using these individuals to front their campaigns and that might be because we still as a society have ways to go to accepting transgender individuals. 

"Only last month World Athletics decided, controversially, to exclude transgender women from competing in elite female competition. So, if the governing bodies of the sports themselves are failing to find ways to include transgender participants, it may not be surprising that many sports brands are guilty of similar underrepresentation," said Graham Hitchmough, the regional chief operating officer at Bonsey Design. 

He continued by saying that while many sports brands do actually include transgender athletes at some level within their marketing, with limited representation in high profile events, backlash from some sectors of the media and society and the potential of being seen as tokenistic, the risks of such high-profile advocacy can be significant.

"Enlightened sports brands will see that fronting campaigns with transgender athletes is just one way of promoting their cause. Clearly defined and articulated diversity inclusion policies, targeted lobbying of governing bodies and commercial support for athletes and events that embrace transgender participation are all more effective long-term strategies, which will themselves create more opportunities for transgender athletes to get coverage in advertising and promotion," he said. 

Agreeing with him, Thomas Skelton, the director of corporate strategy APAC at TEAM LEWIS noted that for any marginalised group, prejudice stems from a lack of visibility and awareness. He said:

When people are not included in the conversation and are not given a voice, the lack of understanding and the marginalisation continue.

He added that rather than an outright hesitation to include trans people in campaigns, it might really be about a lack of representation generally. "As trans people gain more visibility, these voices get louder, and things will change," he said.

"Representation and inclusion in advertising and media have been ongoing issues since the golden ad age and beyond," he continued. "It is a continuous process that takes effort and intentionality." 

It is not enough to make a rainbow packet once a year.

He added that brands need to show that they are on the side of humanity rather than one particular group. To do this, Skelton suggested that brands should partner or consult with charities and lean on their expertise and vast experience to build dialogue between groups sensitively. "Creating conversations can break down stereotypes to show that we are all human. Building positive conversations and enhancing understanding of brands can reduce the risk of negative sentiment," he said. 

Ultimately, Skelton said that it is a matter of when and not if when it comes to including more transgender individuals in campaigns. "Most brands will believe that it is not part of their values or role as a business to have an opinion - and that is understandable," he said.

"But, thinking back to the Black Lives Matter movement, at some point, there will be one pioneering brand that dares to change the narrative. That brand will likely capture the imagination of younger demographics more open and vocal in their desire to work with and buy from companies aligned with those beliefs."

One of many causes

Saying that, it is also important to note that sports brands these days are already fighting for multiple causes such as sustainability, minority representation, obesity and more, according to Alice Dall, the senior strategy director of Design Bridge and Partners. "Sports brands are also no longer just about sports. They are lifestyle brands, churning out the post-pandemic uniform of athleisure-ware. As such, they have growing audiences across an array of markets, each with different sporting and socio-political agendas that need to be considered." Dall added that as a result, there is also backlash with any opinion or action.

As such, brands should just embrace it, according to Dall. As Bill Bowerman said, “If you have a body, you are an athlete”. Creed, colour, gender or sexual orientation shouldn’t matter."

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