MFootball in Europe
As a Michigan fan, I am currently facing a dilemma of epic proportions. Ok, not really, but its a matter of concern. I'm going to be studying abroad in Europe for a semester this fall, and will be out of the country for Michigan's entire regular season. I'm trying to find a way to watch the games, presumably on the internet. If anyone has any knowledge as to how I might make this happen, their insight would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Will
as I will be in Rome for the Western game desperately looking for a way to watch the game that doesn't involve holing up in an internet cafe / coffee shop and staring at my computer the entire time.
I am dreaming of some sort of international alumni gathering somehow...
Update: I was just perusing the UM Alumni Association site, and they have contacts for a lot of the international markets. I'm going to reach out to the contact in the markets where I'll be to see if they do anything. Long shot, but at least it is a shot?
Yes, contact the alumni association in Rome. They can helpful, but there's only so much they can do when four games a year are shown on TV and there's no consistent online video feed. But they're helpful.
Not sure if this will help at all PZ, but there is a 'college' type bar in Rome that caters to Brits and Americans, it is for all intensive purposes a midwest college bar in downtown Rome. Both times I have been they had British and American sports on every TV in the place...
Its called the Drunken Ship and is located in Campo De'Fiori...no idea if they actually show particular games, or would even be open at the right time to show them but it cant hurt to shoot them an email, or a call once you arrive.
Aug
Excellent - thanks for the suggestion - I'll give them a shot!
I am looking forward to attempting to watch this game with you in Rome! Perhaps we should arrange for some sort of Roman Tailgate by setting up a kegger in the Forum or something...
justin.tv, ustream.com, or channelsurfing.net usually have most sporting events. I don't know how many college games they carry, but it's worth a shot.
This is not easy to do. As most here know, I spent all of last season in London... finding the games online is a huge hassle, so much so that I never actually found one on a site I trusted. There is no wonder site that will provide all 12 games, either.
The best alternate solution is scour places that are trustworthy, like Justin.TV, and if you come up with nothing listen to the radio feeds at MGoBlue. A few of our games will be shown on ESPN America, so either get a cable package with it or find a bar that shows it.
Another alternative would be to buy a slingbox and ask a friend to broadcast the games for you. They're on the expensive side, though.
Where are you going in Europe?
For the first two weeks of the season, so I've done a bit of research and two pubs have come up as possibilities:
http://www.thesportscafe.net/london.cfm
which is alleged to be a spectacularly unfun place, and
http://www.thesportscafe.net/london.cfm
about which I know nothing other than it has a US-centric sports schedule.
Did you try either of these places? Any other pub ideas?
Thanks for any help!
The Sports Cafe is a soul-crushing place, but they cater to Americans and will almost certainly have the Michigan games on. Especially the ND game
Yes, yes, yes. SportsCafe is like hell on Earth, but it gets the job done and you'll see Michigan play. And the wings aren't bad, if you can get them.
Thanks Brodie and mad magician. It's actually a fitting way to watch the season opener, kind of an alcoholic's version of a Barwis workout.
I doubt the Western game is show on ESPN America, but a warning for the Notre Dame game: Our British fan community lags behind a lot of major teams, and Notre Dame has facilities in London. During the Ohio State game, not only were we outnumbered by Buckeye fans but also MSU and Penn State fans there for the next game. But, most people are cool, considering the circumstances... one Buckeye fan bought me a scotch to ease my pain.
SportsCafe is not really a "pub". More like the average American sports bar, only the most annoying one ever.
find a friend that is willing to hook up a slingbox for you. You can get slingbox to work on your laptop and iPhone. These features cost a little more but if your friend is watching the game then so are you.
Find someone in the US to set up a slingbox so they can stream you the game. It'll cost you a bit, but you can get all the games.
You should have studied abroad Winter semester like I did. Just kidding (sort of.)
Games can be available via stream on justin.tv (although not necessarily the most reliable.) It worked out decently for me when I was in Costa Rica last season for a wedding, you just need internet.
Also, if you have a slingbox or Hava for about $180 (or know someone who does) this is probably the best bet if you have internet abroad. You can hook it up to a cable box at home, and watch your TV from anywhere in the world. I actually bought a Hava for my parents, and it's strong to quite strong.
You may also just try and catch the games that are on ESPN at bars (perhaps even a Hardrock or something.) You'll be able to watch Michigan games...at night!
If all else fails you could probably listen to the game, or avoid the news for a couple of days and download them via bit torrent. Good luck and enjoy yourself over there. Try and get locals to buy in to Michigan Football!
I actually live in Spain and use to have this problem ,but I pay for ESPN 360. It is about 10 euros a month and I cancel it after the season, but it is also useful for watching college basketball games.
I watched pretty much all of the Michigan games except for the few on the BTN.
Yes, I forgot ESPN 360. I was a tad cash strapped, so it was out of the question for me. If you can afford it, go for it.
I plan on studying abroad as a junior [sophomore to be], but I don't want to be in the Netherlands when we march to a Big 10 Championship. The other problem that comes up is that the hockey team will be loaded that year and should be a national championship frontrunner, and I would be very sad to miss that too. Curse you Michigan athletics.
What about the summer? That's when I studied abroad.
You need two things (as a student you have access to these):
The IPTV you will need to sign in for with your umich uniqname and password. Get both of those installed. When you open the VPN client, you must set it to "on-campus-wireless." Then open the IPTV "Zattoo". If you have questions, I think there are more detailed instructions if you use the search bar and look up IPTV and VPN.
Update: I guess I should point out that this gets you games on the BTN and ABC Detroit only. That should get you all of them though.
i was planning on signing up for espn360....but about this VPN client...can i use it as an alumni? that would be awesome if i can...i wouldnt mind paying some if its just a little more expensive than espn360 to account for the BTN games
an Alumni Association member. If I remember correctly, you need a uniquename and password.
I'm not sure what effect, if any, this may have on the UM IPTV experiment. Just FYI.
http://www.mlive.com/business/ann-arbor/index.ssf/2009/07/web_video_fir…
You can still save money and not buy ESPN360. The VPN client with "on-campus-wireless" allows you to see ESPN360 for free. The school uses an internet provider that includes it.
Yes, you can do this as an alum. This is how I've watched all of the Michigan games broadcast on the BTN.
I believe they didn't have it set to the correct BTN channel, and I ended up missing the Toledo game. Well, I wouldn't say I MISSED it.
i just downloaded the vpn client and zattoo...and theyre both working...but the player is really lagging (im in kuwait so that may be the issue with vpn...i doubt my 2mbps connection is too slow)...has anyone had any experience with lag? is espn360 better?
Thanks
I've been abroad for several years and while streams are improving in quality and dependability, they're still a crapshoot. That's why I started mgovideo. I use streams for the live experience but I feel like I haven't really watched a game until I've downloaded and watched it in HD. Twice.
Thank you for mgovideo, by the way. It's absolutely fantastic.
Where are your priorities son?
www.channelsurfing.net
This sight is free and shows a lot of soccer games. Maybe it will work for Football in the Fall...
hook it up at your parents house, and offer to pay them for BTN. Keep the channel to yourself, and you'll have TV quality on your laptop so long as you have a high-speed internet connection. I love my slingbox.
I'm going to be in Luxembourg, but I'll be traveling on weekends. I'll go to the corners of the continent to see the Ohio State live at a bar. These suggestions have been really helpful so far though, thanks a lot.
And talk about bad timing, I should have gone last fall
Have fun, and don't forget to visit Croatia on your travels!
CROATIA - DISCOUNT ITALY!
I've been in a small town in england last season and will be there till i finish my degree in 2012. Didn't watch all the matches but listened to some on mgoblue or tried watching them n justin.tv etc. It was pretty laggy tho so made it kinda worse. The best thing i recommend is to go out and get hammered and check the score every now and then on a phone. Come back and watch the highlights on mgoblue or mgovideo, read Brians UFR