Full Sail Stories

An international mindset has led to a successful career in professional sports for globe-traversing Full Sail grad and sports executive Martina Bozic. A German-born Croatian, Martina ventured to the United States to pursue a master’s in Entertainment Business at Full Sail following her undergrad studies in Croatia.

“When I moved to the US, I always thought it was a weakness that English is not my first language, that I'm not from America, that I'm a woman in sports, that I needed a work visa,” she says. “But then I understood that's exactly what makes me unique and different from everyone else.”

As an international student, Martina found comfort in Full Sail’s community, recalling the support she received from faculty and staff early in the process.

“They guided me throughout the embassy process, which was a scary process I’d never done before,” shares the grad. “So already, not even stepping on campus, I felt the community and the support. And then, when I stepped on campus, I just felt at home. I felt all the creativity.”

At Full Sail, Martina found a creative community, relevant industry knowledge, and a path to a fulfilling career that aligned with her lifelong goals.

“I was born and raised in Munich, Germany, to Croatian parents. It was always this German-Croatian mix full of energy and passion. Growing up, I was always immersed in entertainment and sports and movies and music…it was always very high energy, loud, and competitive as well,” she shares. But when Croatia qualified for the 1998 World Cup semi-finals, young Martina’s career trajectory made a sudden beeline.

“The 1998 World Cup changed all of it,” she recalls. “I clearly remember watching game by game, Croatia going further and further in the World Cup, and just the whole country coming together and cheering for each other. That pride, that magic, that energy. I’d never felt anything like that in my life, and I knew I wanted to be part of it.”

Over the last decade, Martina has made good on her promise, landing executive-level marketing roles in the sports industry, including time as Director of Brand Alliances with Major League Soccer and Director of Global Sales with IMG Academy.

Currently serving as the Vice President of Football Partnerships with international sports marketing agency SPORTFIVE, Martina keeps her passion for soccer at the forefront of her career.

“I’m speaking with CEOs and CMOs of big Fortune 500 companies who want to invest in soccer. They're trying to find a solution to how to enter the soccer space,” Martina explains. “I’m trying to identify who the audience is that they're trying to reach and how do we integrate that brand authentically into the soccer world.”

Martina’s responsibilities include supporting brand partnerships for the National Women’s Soccer League, fulfilling another of the grad’s passions: amplifying women in sports.

“We want to make it accessible on TV. We want sold-out stadiums. We want little girls to play it in their school and really make it the norm,” says Martina. “It's my job to give back and really promote a culture of inclusivity and diversity. I know I had many other women who did that for me, and I want to be someone who helps other women, empowers them, and truly brings out the best in them.”

In part, the inductee’s success can be attributed to her international perspective, which has been influenced by unique career opportunities like uprooting her life in Florida for a move to Spain or regularly traveling internationally to meet with the world’s largest brands.

“Everyone has a different perspective. All these things that I thought were weaknesses, actually are my strengths. Because I'm not from the US and because I'm not from Spain, I was able to very quickly adapt to a different culture, adapt to the people, really build a strong, deep relationship with someone.”