How do you turn your passion for Major League Soccer, specifically the Philadelphia Union, into an opportunity to gain valuable experience in your desired field? Just ask transfer student and communication studies (CMST) major Skyler Hoffner (he/him).
In 2016, Hoffner went from being a huge Union fan to writing about the team for Union Nation, a section of Philadelphia Sports Nation. Ricky Wegryn (he/him) founded Philadelphia Sports Nation earlier that year, and Hoffner was the first person he brought on that wasn’t just a family friend. While the company started as some fan accounts on Facebook and Twitter, it has now become both a full-blown blog and a website.
“I’ve always wanted to go into sports journalism or something with communication,” Hoffner said. After seeing on Twitter that Union Nation was in need of bloggers, Hoffner applied and has been with the organization for the last five years.
Hoffner started as a blogger his first year at Union Nation, but quickly went on to become a section manager for three years, and is now a social media administrator with the section in his fifth year. Though his titles have changed, he still does some writing of his own in addition to running the Union Nation Twitter and Facebook accounts. He also sits in the press box during games and live tweets the action.
Of course, there was a point when media wasn’t allowed at games due to the COVID-19 pandemic. “It’s definitely really weird meeting with the coaches and players via Zoom,” Hoffner said.
Junior CMST student Sean McMenamin (he/him) has been a blogger with Union Nation since 2017 and said that Hoffner was really good at staying on top of things and making sure there was always content to put out, even if they couldn’t be at games in person. If McMenamin ever ran out of article ideas, he could always count on a quick response from Hoffner with suggestions. “I’m very appreciative of how he’s willing to help me in that regard,” McMenamin said.
Wegryn also noted Hoffner’s incredible communication skills as well as his natural ability to balance school work and Union Nation work. “He distinguished himself as a leader in the group to get the ball rolling,” Wegryn said. McMenamin agrees, saying, “He’s a really good leader for Union Nation.”
The Union season ended on December 8, 2021 after a devastating loss when 10 players were out with COVID-19, but luckily a new season will start again soon on February 26, 2022. Until then, Hoffner recently applied to a media job at The Score and is looking forward to covering more Union soccer and taking courses at Temple University.