Sarah Hadland put Nigerian goalkeeper Maduka Okoye at the center of a This Morning segment on Tuesday, June 23, and the comments quickly turned into a backlash. She praised him as the world's sexiest footballer, and some viewers later said the exchange crossed into sexist objectification.
Hadland said, "I will be watching now I’ve seen the Nigerian goalkeeper." She added, "Have you seen him? Wow-ee, thank you very much! I wish he was [sat right here], he’s absolutely gorgeous."
Stephen Mangan on objectification
Stephen Mangan pushed back during the segment, saying, "I would hate to objectify a man like that." Hadland answered, "So would I, but look at him. I don’t care if he can do Shakespeare, he’s looking lovely in a tight top, thank you."
Ben Shephard then asked, "Isn’t he causing issues in relationships?" Hadland replied, "Apparently relationships have broken up because of him. I mean, I can understand it, women are obsessed." She also said, "I’ve got very hot! He might be watching. Maduka, if you’re watching!"
X backlash after the segment
Reaction followed on X, where viewers criticized the comments as sexist and objectifying. One wrote, "This underlines the double standards here. Switch it around and a man would be cancelled saying the same about a woman footballer! Unnecessary objectification of a male footballer at @ITV."
Another called the segment "rancid," while a third wrote, "If a woman does this it's a joke and a bit of harmless fun, if a man does this then he is sacked for being a perv." Others defended Hadland’s remarks as harmless fun, leaving the debate fixed on the same contradiction she voiced on air: she said she hated to objectify a man, then kept doing it anyway.
The segment did not end with an apology or correction, so the criticism now sits with the comments themselves. Hadland’s on-air lines about Maduka Okoye are what viewers are still arguing over.
