Our strategy gaming veterans welcome host Sid to explore the Football Manager franchise’s rich history, covering everything from Championship Manager’s bedroom origins and personal addiction stories to FM26’s turbulent launch, examining how the world’s most detailed sports database became a lifestyle game that costs relationships and whether the controversial new direction represents evolution or misstep.

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This episode provides an intimate examination of Football Manager through the perspectives of devoted players who have lost jobs and relationships to the addictive management simulation, featuring detailed discussions of the franchise’s evolution from 1992’s Championship Manager through the unprecedented FM25 cancellation to FM26’s review-bombed early access release. The hosts share personal stories of their first encounters with the series, favourite wonder kids across different editions, and the specific gameplay loops that make Football Manager uniquely suited to certain work schedules and lifestyles. The conversation explores the franchise’s split from Championship Manager, analyses why FM26’s Unity engine transition and interface redesign provoked such negative reactions despite improved features, and examines whether Sports Interactive’s accessibility-focused changes serve long-time fans or alienate the dedicated community that sustained the franchise through two decades.

Critical Moves Podcast Episode 55 Show Notes

Episode Title: FM26. Football Manager’s New Low?
Hosts: Joe, Sid
Episode Length: ~53 minutes

Episode Summary

The fifty-fifth episode of Critical Moves explores the Football Manager franchise through the experiences of two devoted players who have literally lost relationships and jobs due to the game’s addictive nature. From Sid’s childhood introduction to Championship Manager 01/02 through Joe’s FM12 San Marino challenge obsession, the discussion reveals how this database-driven management simulation creates uniquely personal stories and long-term engagement that transcends traditional gaming experiences. The conversation examines the franchise’s development history from bedroom project to industry-standard scouting database, analyses the unprecedented FM25 cancellation when lead developer Miles Jacobson deemed the game “not fun enough,” and explores FM26’s controversial Unity engine transition that provoked review bombing despite genuine improvements to match engines, transfer systems, and tactical depth.

The Football Manager Addiction: Personal Stories

Life-Altering Game Commitment

Both hosts openly acknowledge Football Manager’s reputation for destroying relationships, friendships, and career prospects through its uniquely addictive gameplay loop that makes “one more match” extend into marathon sessions lasting entire days. Sid’s candid admission about lost relationships and employment due to FM addiction illustrates the game’s notorious hold over dedicated players who find themselves unable to stop progressing through seasons.

Joe’s description of FM as perfectly suited to his work schedule due to the “holiday” function allowing rapid simulation between matches demonstrates how the game integrates into daily life rather than serving as discrete entertainment sessions. The ability to work productively for eight hours while simultaneously burning through an entire Football Manager season reveals how the game’s pacing accommodates divided attention in ways traditional real-time games cannot.

The Invisible Work Game

The observation that Football Manager looks like administrative work rather than gaming provides crucial insight into how players integrate the simulation into professional environments without detection. The spreadsheet-like interfaces and data-heavy presentation mean observers cannot distinguish between actual work and football management unless catching players during match engine sequences.

Sid’s anecdote about working in recording studios with FM running alongside professional tasks without anyone questioning his activity illustrates this camouflage effect. This “stealth gaming” capability contributes to the game’s workplace penetration and explains how players accumulate thousands of hours across supposedly productive periods.

Introductions to the Franchise

Sid’s Championship Manager Origin

Sid’s introduction to Championship Manager 01/02 at approximately age ten or eleven through an older teenager’s computer demonstrates the franchise’s multi-generational appeal and its status as gateway drug for young football enthusiasts. The mesmerizing effect of watching flashing text-based match commentary on someone else’s screen created fascination despite complete absence of traditional graphical elements.

The challenge of explaining database-driven simulation to a ten-year-old accustomed to visual games highlights how radically different Championship Manager was from contemporary gaming norms. This early exposure created lifelong commitment, with Sid purchasing every iteration since across 25 years including pre-Steam physical disc editions that now comprise a personal collection representing franchise history.

Joe’s FIFA to FM Transition

Joe’s discovery of Football Manager through Reddit recommendations after enjoying FIFA’s career mode scouting and team-building systems represents a common conversion path where console football games serve as introductory experiences before players graduate to FM’s complexity. The advice that “you’ll never be the same” after trying Football Manager proved prophetic despite initial confusion during the first 30 minutes.

The San Marino challenge as Joe’s first serious FM experience demonstrates the franchise’s appeal through emergent storytelling and long-term achievement rather than immediate gratification. Spending an entire year playing a single save focused on elevating a lower-league Italian club and their tiny nation to international prominence created deeper engagement than typical gaming experiences, establishing patterns that would define future interactions with the series.

Championship Manager vs Football Manager: The Split

Brothers’ Bedroom Beginnings

The franchise’s origin story traces back to 1992 when brothers Paul and Oliver Collier developed the original Championship Manager in their Shropshire bedroom, releasing it across multiple early platforms including Amiga and Atari ST before expanding to Windows and consoles. This humble beginning contrasts sharply with the massive sports simulation empire the franchise would become.

Championship Manager’s rapid growth through the late 1990s established it as the dominant football management simulation, creating brand recognition and player loyalty that made the eventual franchise split particularly significant for long-time fans who didn’t initially understand they were playing different games developed by competing teams.

The 2004 Split and Parallel Development

The 2004 split between Sports Interactive and publisher Eidos created the unusual situation where Sports Interactive retained the game code and engine while Eidos kept the Championship Manager brand, resulting in two competing football management games releasing simultaneously. Sports Interactive’s first Football Manager represented evolution of the established codebase while Eidos’ new Championship Manager team attempted to recreate the experience without access to the original technology.

The parallel development period lasting until Championship Manager’s 2016 discontinuation created market confusion where casual consumers might purchase the familiar Championship Manager brand without realizing it no longer represented the original development team’s vision. Sid’s experience buying Championship Manager specifically to evaluate the competing product demonstrates how even dedicated fans felt compelled to investigate both versions.

Sports Interactive’s Database Dominance

Football Manager’s evolution into an industry-standard scouting database used by actual professional clubs represents remarkable real-world impact beyond entertainment software. Sports Interactive’s provision of database services to real football organizations creates fascinating feedback loops where fictional simulation influences actual player recruitment and valuation.

The database’s comprehensiveness containing approximately 800,000 individuals including players, coaches, scouts, and referees across 100 fully playable leagues establishes it as definitive reference material for global football knowledge. This unprecedented depth explains why some players spend more time in database management and scouting than actually managing matches.

Evolution Through Editions: Favourite Versions

FM04 and the 2D Match Engine Revolution

Sid identifies FM04’s introduction of the 2D match engine as a pivotal moment when players could finally visualize their tactical instructions rather than relying solely on text commentary. The ability to see player positioning and movement patterns transformed strategic understanding, making complex tactical systems comprehensible to broader audiences beyond hardcore simulation enthusiasts.

The subsequent dominance of 2D match presentation for multiple editions despite 3D engine availability demonstrates how the simpler visual representation better communicated tactical information than early 3D attempts. Many long-time players maintained 2D preference for years, viewing it as superior tactical tool despite less impressive graphical presentation.

The Regen Face Disaster

Joe’s recollection of the edition when Sports Interactive attempted to make regenerated player faces match in-game character models represents a well-intentioned change that produced disastrous results, with the new faces looking sufficiently terrible that players actively rejected the supposedly improved system. The specific edition number remains hazy, estimated around FM17-19, but the impact was memorable enough to drive Joe back to the previous edition for nine months.

The existence of face mods that players preferred to official graphics demonstrates how modding communities often better understand player preferences than developers. Joe’s attachment to a specific face mod that made the game feel perfect illustrates how seemingly minor aesthetic choices significantly impact player experience and immersion in long-term saves.

FM24 as Modern Pinnacle

The consensus that FM24 represents the franchise’s modern high-water mark before FM26’s controversial changes suggests that the cancelled FM25 might have been peak performance if released as intended. The observation that FM24’s match engine already felt “light years ahead” of previous versions in animation quality and tactical representation creates ironic situation where the follow-up’s promised improvements seem unnecessary.

Sid’s additional praise for FM20’s data presentation and customization options during matches highlights how feature removal across subsequent editions frustrated players who valued granular information access. The cycle of adding features, removing them, and reintroducing them creates unnecessary frustration for players who simply want accumulated improvements rather than sideways feature shuffling.

The Unprecedented FM25 Cancellation

“Not Good Enough” and “Not Fun”

Miles Jacobson’s decision to cancel FM25 approximately one month before expected beta release represents unprecedented action in annual sports game development, where publisher pressure and financial obligations typically force releases regardless of quality concerns. The simple explanation that the game “wasn’t good enough” and he “wasn’t having fun” demonstrates remarkable commitment to quality over commercial obligations.

The timing of the cancellation, coming after repeated delays and community questions about beta availability, suggests internal recognition of fundamental problems that couldn’t be resolved through additional polish. The promise of Unity engine transition, improved graphics, and women’s football integration made the cancellation particularly disappointing for players anticipating the franchise’s biggest evolution.

Community Reaction and Sega Pressure

Initial community response mixed disappointment with respect for prioritizing quality, though concerns immediately emerged about whether FM26 would face similar delays or whether commercial pressures would force premature release. The speculation about Sega’s publisher obligations and whether two releases could occur within a single calendar year highlights the business realities underlying development decisions.

Sid’s relief that Sports Interactive cancelled rather than releasing a fundamentally flawed product demonstrates how franchise loyalty and long-term thinking can make fans accept short-term disappointment. However, the subsequent FM26 reception suggests this goodwill may have been squandered by rushing the next iteration to meet perceived obligations.

FM26: Promises, Problems, and Polarization

Unity Engine Transition and Technical Debt

The move to Unity engine after decades on proprietary technology represents massive undertaking that inevitably introduces technical challenges and workflow disruptions. The promised benefits of modern foundation enabling better graphics, UI flexibility, and cross-platform development came with substantial risks of introducing bugs and performance problems that materialized immediately upon early access release.

The game’s inability to run smoothly even on high-end hardware like Sid’s RTX 4090 demonstrates catastrophic optimization failures where PowerPoint-style menu transitions and loading delays created unacceptable user experiences regardless of underlying feature improvements. The existence of community mods to remove transition animations before Sports Interactive provided official options highlights how obviously problematic these choices were.

Interface Redesign and Muscle Memory

The comprehensive interface overhaul removing the traditional left-side panel and implementing tile-based navigation provoked immediate negative reactions from long-time players whose muscle memory suddenly became obsolete. The defensive claim that players would adjust after 20 hours fundamentally misunderstands how many potential players approach games, willing to abandon experiences that feel bad within minutes rather than enduring extended learning periods.

The tile system’s optimization for touch interfaces and console controllers at the apparent expense of PC mouse-and-keyboard efficiency suggests Sports Interactive prioritized platform expansion over core audience preferences. This design philosophy, while commercially understandable given potential market growth on consoles and mobile devices, alienates the dedicated PC players who sustained the franchise through two decades.

Review Bombing and “Mostly Negative” Reception

FM26’s “mostly negative” Steam reviews represent unprecedented rejection for a mainline Football Manager release, with the review bombing beginning immediately upon early access launch. The decision to rebrand the release as “advanced access” rather than traditional beta messaging suggests awareness of potential problems and attempt to manage expectations.

However, the description of bugs, performance issues, clunky UI, and fundamental playability problems indicates that branding changes couldn’t obscure genuine quality problems. The contrast between overwhelmingly negative player reception and Sid’s more measured perspective that the game needs time to improve highlights the gap between franchise loyalists willing to endure growing pains and broader audiences expecting polished experiences.

Actual Improvements Hidden by Problems

Match Engine Evolution and Realistic Animation

The match engine improvements including better player movement, natural-looking animations, and contextual behaviours like players looking up before receiving crosses represent genuine progress obscured by surrounding technical problems. The reduction in “ice skating” movement and increased tactical realism create better strategic visualization when the game actually runs properly.

These improvements build on FM24’s already impressive match presentation, suggesting the underlying football simulation continues improving even as surrounding systems struggle. The tragedy of FM26’s reception is that legitimate advances in core gameplay become irrelevant when basic usability fails.

Transfer System Overhaul and Market Dynamics

The transfer room integration providing clearer visibility into player availability and market dynamics addresses longstanding frustrations where determining which players were actually available for purchase required extensive investigation. The new recruitment hub enabling short, medium, and long-term squad planning with replacement mapping and wonder kid tracking formalizes systems that previously required external spreadsheets.

Joe’s acknowledgment of maintaining target lists in Excel files demonstrates how dedicated players developed workarounds for missing features, making native implementation particularly valuable for those willing to persist past technical problems. The improved financial realism tying budgets and wage structures more closely to club reputation and league status prevents the historical pattern where Football Manager would mysteriously rescue poorly-run clubs from debt.

Barcelona’s Debt and Financial Realism

The specific complaint about Barcelona’s mountainous debt mysteriously disappearing after three game years highlights how FM’s economic simulation historically prioritized playability over authentic financial consequences. Joe’s desire to experience the challenge of managing severely constrained budgets and fire-selling overpriced players to achieve solvency creates emergent storytelling that automatic debt forgiveness prevents.

The question of whether FM26 finally allows clubs to fail financially rather than receiving invisible bailouts remains unanswered, with Sid encouraging community members to report their findings. This uncertainty about whether fundamental improvements exist beneath surface problems characterizes FM26’s reception, where genuine progress might emerge as technical issues resolve.

Tactical Systems and Formation Flexibility

In-Possession vs Out-of-Possession Shapes

The new system separating formations based on possession status enables more authentic tactical representation where teams might attack in 4-3-3 but defend in 4-1-4-1 through role assignments rather than manual formation switching. This formalization of existing workarounds provides clearer tactical communication and easier implementation of complex systems.

However, Sid’s admission that he preferred the old system despite its limitations demonstrates how increased complexity doesn’t automatically improve user experience. The concern that the new approach requires more consideration and deeper player role understanding creates barriers to experimentation and quick tactical adjustments that characterized previous editions.

Gegenpressing and 4-2-3-1 Dominance

Sid’s preferred tactic of 4-2-3-1 gegenpressing with high pressing and quick transitions protected by two defensive midfielders represents a meta strategy that has dominated recent Football Manager editions. The reliance on energetic midfielders and pacey attackers mirrors real-world tactical trends where pressing systems have revolutionized modern football.

The question of whether FM26’s tactical changes create new viable approaches or simply make implementing established strategies more complex remains central to evaluating the game’s direction. If increased tactical depth enables better simulation of diverse football philosophies, complexity serves purpose; if it merely complicates executing existing ideas without expanding strategic options, it represents regression disguised as evolution.

Wonder Kids and Personal Legends

Freddy Adu: The FM Legend

Freddy Adu’s status as Football Manager legend in the FM2005 era demonstrates the gap between in-game potential and real-world career outcomes, as the player hyped as “the next Pelé” dominated FM saves despite never achieving predicted stardom in actual football. This divergence between simulation and reality creates alternate history scenarios where FM players remember Adu as genuine superstar.

The community-wide recognition of certain wonder kids as dominant forces across multiple players’ saves creates shared reference points and folklore that binds the FM community. These collective experiences of particular players outperforming expectations become part of franchise history regardless of real-world career trajectories.

Personal Discoveries and Youth Intake Obsession

Joe’s story of spending an entire workday reloading youth intake to receive a player sharing his name demonstrates the obsessive behaviours FM enables through its simulation of youth academy systems. The 100+ reloads required to achieve this personal connection might seem excessive to outsiders but represents reasonable dedication for FM players seeking unique narratives.

The subsequent development of this youth intake player into national team calibre represents perfect FM storytelling where personal investment transforms data into meaningful character arc. Similarly, Joe’s attachment to wonder kids from non-traditional football nations like Thailand creates memorable narratives precisely because they defy expectations about which countries produce elite players.

Lorenzo Kryzite and the Bossing Midfielder

Joe’s multi-edition loyalty to Italian defensive midfielder Lorenzo Kryzite, continuing to sign him in later editions when he had aged into lower leagues simply to provide coaching roles upon retirement, illustrates the genuine emotional connections FM creates between players and fictional characters represented by database entries. The “bossing the midfield” notification creating permanent attachment demonstrates how game language and repeated success build affection.

These personal legends that individual players carry across years and editions create unique franchise experiences that cannot be replicated through guided content or scripted narratives. The database continuity allowing players to track favourite athletes across their entire careers provides longitudinal storytelling unavailable in games with completely randomized rosters.

Women’s Football Integration

14 Leagues Across 11 Nations

FM26’s inclusion of women’s football as first-party content represents significant milestone after years of community requests, with 14 playable leagues across 11 nations providing foundation for future expansion. The approximately 35,000-36,000 women’s players in the database creates substantial starting point despite representing fraction of the 800,000 total individuals tracked across all databases.

The ability to manage in both men’s and women’s football within the same universe enables unique career narratives and potentially interesting comparisons between development systems and tactical approaches across the divided sport. However, the acknowledgment that women’s database isn’t as fleshed out as men’s sets realistic expectations about feature parity.

Future Development and Database Expansion

Both hosts express interest in women’s football integration while acknowledging they’ll likely wait for subsequent editions with expanded databases and refined features before seriously exploring the new content. This measured response reflects understanding that first implementations typically require iteration before achieving parity with established features.

The expectation that women’s football will receive continued development attention and database expansion in FM27 and beyond suggests Sports Interactive views this as long-term investment rather than one-time addition. The years-long wait between Miles Jacobson’s acknowledgment that women’s football would eventually come and actual implementation demonstrates commitment to doing it properly rather than rushing incomplete version.

Premier League License and Authenticity

Real Team Names and Stadium Atmosphere

The acquisition of official Premier League licensing for the first time enables authentic team names, badges, and stadium presentation that previously required mod installation. While hardcore players routinely applied community-created real name fixes, official licensing removes barriers for casual players and provides validation of the franchise’s industry importance.

Sid’s comment that he hasn’t bothered with mods this year due to official licensing demonstrates how this change impacts player behaviour and reduces friction in initial setup process. The focus on English leagues in his saves makes Premier League licensing particularly valuable compared to players who primarily manage in other nations where unofficial names remain standard.

FIFA License and World Cup Integration

The announced work toward FIFA licensing integration ahead of future World Cup cycles suggests Sports Interactive aims to secure comprehensive authentic presentation across club and international football. This licensing pursuit represents significant investment and indicates confidence in franchise longevity and revenue generation sufficient to justify licensing fees.

The contrast between FM’s aggressive licensing pursuit and EA Sports’ loss of FIFA branding creates ironic situation where the management simulation potentially achieves more authentic presentation than the action-focused football game that popularized the sport in gaming.

The Scottish League Appeal

Building from Scottish Foundations

Joe’s preference for Scottish leagues over English football demonstrates how perceived difficulty and underdog narratives create more satisfying long-term saves than managing already-dominant clubs. The observation that English leagues feel “too easy” suggests that constraint and challenge provide more engaging experiences than unlimited resources.

The British Isles focus enabling management across interconnected leagues in England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland creates rich ecosystem for career progression while maintaining geographical coherence. This regional approach to long-term saves provides narrative logic that worldwide journeyman careers sometimes lack.

Journeyman Philosophy and Starting from Nothing

Both hosts’ commitment to journeyman saves beginning unemployed with minimal qualifications demonstrates preference for emergent storytelling over guided experiences with established teams. Sid’s practice of setting manager statistics to “Sunday league footballer” creates maximum challenge where reputation must be built entirely through results rather than inherited from playing career.

Joe’s concession of granting himself one coaching badge represents minor compromise acknowledging that anyone could achieve basic qualification if seriously pursuing management career. This slight elevation above absolute zero provides psychological justification while maintaining spirit of rags-to-riches narrative.

Community Stories and Shared Experiences

Croatian Regen Legends and Community Folklore

The mention of community stories about Croatian wonderkids and other region-specific phenomena demonstrates how FM players share discoveries and create collective knowledge about database quirks and development patterns. These community-driven narratives build franchise mythology beyond any official marketing or developer intention.

The shared experience of discovering particular player types or regional development patterns creates bonds between FM players who might never interact directly but recognize references and understand the significance of certain findings within the simulation’s systems.

Shane Long’s Magical Edition

The memory of “the year Shane Long was the best player in the game” represents FM community shorthand for specific edition imbalances where database ratings produced unexpected dominance from players not typically considered elite. These anomalies become part of franchise folklore, remembered fondly despite technically representing database inaccuracies.

Joe’s story of signing Shane Long in Scottish leagues before watching Barcelona purchase him demonstrates how even questionable database ratings create memorable narratives when players build stories around unexpected outcomes. The willingness to embrace simulation quirks rather than demanding perfect accuracy reflects how FM players value interesting stories over pure realism.

Final Thoughts and Future Outlook

Sid’s “Let Them Cook” Philosophy

Sid’s measured response advocating patience and allowing Sports Interactive time to realize their vision demonstrates franchise loyalty and understanding that major engine transitions inevitably create temporary problems. The acknowledgment that “it’s not going to be perfect straight away by any means” sets realistic expectations while maintaining faith in eventual improvement.

The observation that many players are enjoying FM26 despite negative reviews suggests vocal minority phenomenon where dissatisfied players disproportionately dominate discourse. However, “mostly negative” Steam rating indicates problems extend beyond typical resistance to change, requiring genuine improvements beyond community attitude adjustments.

Accessibility vs Hardcore Appeal

The speculation that FM26’s changes might benefit new players despite alienating veterans raises important questions about whether Sports Interactive made deliberate choice to sacrifice long-time fans for potential market expansion. The goal of enticing FIFA career mode players to graduate to proper management simulation represents sensible business strategy given stagnant growth from existing audience.

However, the execution problems obscure whether underlying design philosophy actually improves new player onboarding or simply annoys everyone equally. If technical problems resolve and interface changes prove genuinely more intuitive for newcomers while veterans adapt, the controversial transition might achieve intended goals despite rocky launch.

The FM24 Delisting Problem

The removal of FM24 from Steam purchase options while FM26 remains unpolished creates frustrating situation where potential new players cannot access the superior recent version and must either pay full price for problematic current edition or seek keys through unofficial channels. While existing owners retain download access, preventing new purchases of well-regarded previous edition seems counterproductive.

This policy likely reflects licensing agreements and Sports Interactive’s desire to avoid splitting the player base, but creates negative publicity and denies potential revenue from players specifically seeking the last stable version. The suggestion that “other key sites” might have FM24 available acknowledges grey market solutions that benefit neither developer nor consumer.

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Episode Verdict

This episode successfully captures the passionate relationship between Football Manager and its devoted players through personal stories that demonstrate why the franchise inspires life-disrupting addiction despite surface-level resemblance to administrative work. The honest discussion of relationships and jobs lost to FM’s “one more match” compulsion provides context for why FM26’s technical problems provoke such strong reactions – players aren’t merely disappointed by a flawed game, they’re mourning disruption of a lifestyle activity integrated into their daily routines over decades of iteration. The detailed examination of franchise history from Championship Manager’s bedroom origins through the unprecedented FM25 cancellation to FM26’s review-bombed launch reveals how Sports Interactive’s ambitious Unity engine transition and accessibility-focused redesign created perfect storm of technical problems and interface alienation that obscured genuine improvements to match engines, transfer systems, and tactical depth. The conversation’s exploration of personal FM legends, wonder kid obsessions, and journeyman save philosophies demonstrates the emergent storytelling that makes Football Manager unique among sports games, where database relationships create genuine emotional investment in fictional characters tracked across decades of simulated time. Ultimately, the episode argues that FM26’s problems likely represent temporary growing pains from necessary modernization rather than fundamental franchise decline, while acknowledging that execution failures have squandered goodwill from FM25’s cancellation and created legitimate questions about whether Sports Interactive understands its core audience or has chosen to sacrifice long-time fans for theoretical market expansion that might never materialize.

Next Episode: TBC