Banner ads and a homepage takeover on Joe.ie carried the slogans "A 2 at 10 is a 10 at 2!" and "She’s seen more ceilings than Michelangelo".
The ads prompted a flurry of angry comments on Twitter, with many saying the Coca-Cola-owned lemonade brand had debased its #BrutallyRefreshing hashtag, which describes uncomfortable truths.
Paddy McKenna, the editor of Joe.ie, responded to a Twitter user and said the ad "shouldn’t have been there and has since been removed."
Sprite: "We'd like to aim our product at a misogynistic audience."
— Tommy Smith (@tommyxcore) August 3, 2016
Marketer: "Say no more."#BrutallyRefreshing pic.twitter.com/y9VWhV9CVX
In a statement, Coca-Cola said: "We're sorry for any offence caused by the #BrutallyRefreshing Sprite campaign in Ireland, which was intended to provide an edgy but humorous take on a range of situations.
"Since its introduction in Ireland, Sprite has been associated with individuality and self-expression and we have always been committed to ensuring we deliver the highest standard of advertising.
"We recognise that on this particular occasion the content did not meet this standard and we apologise. The campaign has now come to an end and the advert in question will not appear again."
Two degrading and disgusting ads by Sprite spotted this week. #BrutallyRefreshing ??#TerribleAdCampaign more like pic.twitter.com/stRTocZjs4
— ? Brenna ? (@BrennaKeane) July 22, 2016
Oh wow! @JOEdotie @JOE_co_uk are you serious?! @Sprite this is horrific! #BrutallyRefreshing #BrutallySexist pic.twitter.com/yH9TP6G2yA
— Noëlle O'Reilly (@NoelleNate) August 4, 2016
@Sprite how many ceilings has Michelangelo seen? I want to know now.
— Susan (@superconfusing) August 4, 2016
Also wtf were you thinking #BrutallyRefreshing pic.twitter.com/O9srBy3CAH
