By Ryan Hirsh, Journalism Junior

Ryan Hirsh was one of 15 students who participated in the Globalizing American Sports study-abroad program from the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications, held Nov. 1-6, 2023 in Frankfurt, Germany. To read other stories from the program, visit here.

In January 2023, I took part in the NBA in Paris study abroad program with CJC, so when I saw that there was an opportunity to cover the first ever NFL game in Frankfurt, Germany, I knew I had to apply. Then, I realized the game we would be covering would be the Miami Dolphins vs. the Kansas City Chiefs. As a lifelong Dolphins fan, I was determined to be selected for this course.  

As the summer came to an end, I waited anxiously to learn if I had been selected for the program. When I received my acceptance email, I felt relieved and excited for the semester to begin. 

Comparing NBA in Paris to NFL in Frankfurt 

There were some differences between the NBA program and this one. The NBA one was a one-credit course that did not have a scheduled class time and only required us to write an article about the event. The NFL in Frankfurt program was a three-credit course that met every week, taught us about efforts to globalize American sports, and required us to create a multimedia story about an international Gator student-athlete in addition to an article about the game.  

My partners – Alyssa Infante and Becca Friedman – and I decided that we would compare a Miami Dolphins home game and fan experience to the game and experience in Frankfurt. In doing so, we would examine how well the NFL has done in their efforts to globalize American football and what areas they needed to improve in. To accomplish this, we drove to Miami for the Dolphins vs Carolina Panthers game two weeks ahead of the Frankfurt game. There, we interviewed fans and took notes of the gameday experience. The next two weeks flew by, and we were off to Germany! 

Experiencing Germany

In comparison to the NBA in Paris program, the NFL in Frankfurt course felt much more structured and focused. I liked having more scheduled activities and tours lined up to teach us more about how the NFL is working to globalize American football. We talked to sports media professionals from RTL and the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) at the DOSB, visited the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper and learned about their sports coverage, and met a marketing employee from the Frankfurt Galaxy (an American football team in the European League of Football). 

Our last day in Frankfurt was game day. All 15 of us in the course attended the game and experienced the spectacular atmosphere at Deutsche Bank Park for the Dolphins-Chiefs game. The stadium grounds were packed to the brim with fans, food, activities, and more. I kicked a field goal at one of the NFL fan activities, ate a German pretzel and bratwurst, and enjoyed the game with my family, who joined me in Germany. 

Looking Back

My favorite part of these short study-abroad programs has been the ability to learn about and immerse myself in a new culture without losing an entire semester at school. Also, I have met so many amazing people on these trips that I would never have become friends with if it weren’t for these programs. Traveling abroad with a group of people can bring you together extremely quickly, and I will always cherish the memories I’ve made during these programs. 

These classes have also given me the opportunity to write and publish stories about the events, allowing me to gain valuable experience for my future in sports media. I highly recommend the Sports@CJC study abroad programs to anyone who is interested in a sports-focused experience that allows you to study abroad without missing a full semester at UF. 

Posted: December 14, 2023
Category: CJC in Frankfurt, Sports, Study Abroad Projects
Tagged as: Globalizing American Sports, sports, Sports@CJC, Study Abroad, Study Abroad experience