Football Manager

Getting started

The first time you open it, your club is created automatically: “FC” plus your name, a €5,000,000 budget and 1,000 fans – with no players and no stadium yet. You can rename your club at any time. There's exactly one club per member and community.

Players, attributes & squad

• Outfield players have 7 attributes rated from 0 to 7; your community decides which attributes these are. Goalkeepers have a single goalkeeping rating from 0 to 49.
• 8 positions: goalkeeper, centre-back, right-back, left-back, midfielder, right winger, left winger, striker.
• Players are aged 16 to 36 and have a nationality. Past the age of 36, they retire.
• Market value is based on the sum of a player's attributes and their age (peaking at 26) – ranging from €25,000 to €15 million.
• Salary per season depends on strength, age and contract length.

Transfer market

• Every purchase also signs a contract lasting 1 to 5 seasons.
• You list your own players at a price you choose; when sold to another club, the fee goes to you.
• 10 new players hit the market at every season changeover, mostly young talents. Admins can add further players.
• When a contract expires, the player returns to the market.

Line-up & matches

You set your 11 starters and 5 substitutes by drag and drop; only a goalkeeper can play in goal. 12 formations are available: 4-4-2, 5-3-2, 5-2-3, 4-5-1, 4-3-3, 5-4-1, 3-2-5, 6-3-1, 3-5-2, 3-4-3, 4-2-4 and 4-4-2 with a sweeper.

The website doesn't simulate matches. Results come either from a connected football game that loads your line-up and reports back goals, cards, injuries and substitutions, or through the tournament module's normal result reporting. Squad strength affects attendance, sponsors and cup seeding.

Stadium, facilities & revenue

The stadium is made up of sectors on four sides. Standing places cost €100 each, seats €300, and boxes €2,000; a roof adds 40% to the price. Sectors can be expanded later.

At every home match in a manager league, the home club collects matchday revenue. Attendance rises with your win rate, squad strength, infrastructure and fan base. Seats earn 2.5 times the standing price, and boxes 10 times.

Training & youth academy

• Passive training: at every season changeover, each player has up to a 30% chance to improve by one point – depending on the training ground and player care.
• Training camps: up to 2 per season, for outfield players or goalkeepers, levels 1 to 5. The higher the level, the more expensive it is – and the greater the improvement chance (up to 60%).
• Youth academy: 1 to 3 ten-year-old talents join at every season changeover. Individual training is unlimited.
• From age 16, you can promote a talent to the first-team squad (a 3-season contract). At 19, any talent not promoted moves to the transfer market – you receive their market value as a transfer fee.

Sponsors & fans

There are two sponsorship slots: the shirt sponsor pays per season, and pitch-side advertising pays per home match. Offers have a tier from 1 to 5, a term of 1 to 3 seasons, and require a minimum reputation based on your squad strength. Each offer can only be taken by one club – first come, first served.

Your fan base grows when your win rate is above 45% and shrinks below that, but never falls under 100.

Leagues, cups & national teams

• Leagues: admins link a league from the tournament module to the manager season. Clubs register themselves, and the fixture list is generated round-robin. A club can play in several leagues.
• Cups: single or double knockout, optionally with an entry fee and prize money. Seeding is based on squad strength.
• National teams: you apply as coach of a country that has at least 16 players with 2 goalkeepers in your community. Each country has one coach, who calls up up to 26 players of that nationality from all clubs.

Season changeover & finances

Your community's admins trigger the season changeover. Here's what happens: every player ages a year, salaries fall due, broadcast and sponsor money is paid out, fans come or go, contracts expire, youth players move up, passive training takes effect, cup prize money is paid, and the market is restocked.