Sports Interactive and Sega have announced the cancellation of Football Manager 25 across all platforms. This marks the first time the long-running series has skipped a year since its inception in 2004. The decision follows a challenging development process hampered by the transition to the Unity game engine.
Initially touted as a "generation-defining" technical and visual leap, the move to Unity presented unforeseen difficulties, particularly impacting the player experience and user interface. This led to two previous delays before the ultimate cancellation. The announcement was made alongside Sega Sammy Holdings' financial results, which reflect the associated costs. Sega has confirmed that no job losses resulted from this decision.
Sports Interactive stated that no Football Manager 24 update with 2024/25 season data will be released, prioritizing resources for Football Manager 26. Discussions are underway with platform holders and licensors to potentially extend FM24 agreements on subscription services like Game Pass. Pre-orders for FM25 will be fully refunded.
The developers acknowledged the disappointment this news will cause, particularly given the previous delays and anticipation for the game's reveal. They emphasized their commitment to delivering high-quality games and explained that the decision to cancel stemmed from the game not meeting their internal quality standards, despite significant effort. Extensive testing revealed shortcomings in the overall player experience and interface, falling short of the expected level. Releasing a subpar game or delaying further into the football season were deemed unacceptable options.
The team's focus now shifts entirely to Football Manager 26, targeting the usual November release window. Further updates on the progress of FM26 will be shared as they become available.
