Cristine Hall
As a child, Schwegler sometimes woke at 5 a.m. to find his German father watching Premier League soccer. He couldn’t understand the appeal.
“Why are you watching? There’s nothing happening,” he remembers thinking.
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Then he watched Germany win the 2014 World Cup. The tournament sparked a love of soccer and, eventually, an ambition to call its biggest moments as a play-by-play announcer.
Years of vocal training taught him to trust his voice and keep going when something went wrong — skills he now brings to sports broadcasting.
At Chapman University, Schwegler did not have to wait long to try those skills out. The broadcast journalism and documentary major called his first game for the student-run Chapman Sports Broadcast Network (CSBN) within a week of arriving on campus. A month later, he was a sideline reporter at Homecoming.
Faculty support helped him build on that early start. Associate Professor Suzanne Lysak was the only faculty member from any university to contact him after his admission, Schwegler said. She remains someone he turns to for career advice. He also credits faculty member Michelle Pulfrey with encouraging him when he doubted himself.
Schwegler brought that preparation to the 2026 FIFA Host Broadcast (HB) Intern Programme at SoFi Stadium. He supported audio systems used by international announcers.
During matches, Schwegler and his team assisted commentators in the media tribune and monitored audio levels from the production compound. The role gave him experience working with professionals from around the world and the opportunities to build relationships in an industry where connections matter.
The internship brought Schwegler closer to a goal he has held since he was 18.
“The thing I want to do more than anything professionally is call a World Cup game,” he said. “This only reinforced my desire to do that one day.”
