In a shock move for the popular sim, Sega is delaying Football Manager 25 until March 2025, putting its release barely two months before 2025’s European Champions League Final.
Developer Sports Interactive and Sega released a statement calling it “tough decision” and saying that specific platform dates will follow once confirmed. The statement continued, “In our last Development Update in September, we explained that we needed to push FM25’s original release back to give ourselves more time to deliver the best possible experience for this first installment in a new era of Football Manager. This additional time has not been sufficient to ensure the game quality and experience meets your expectations and our very high standards.”
We have made the tough decision to delay the release of Football Manager 25 until March 2025.
Statement: https://t.co/zW7dRd1Lkp pic.twitter.com/UKPnz4l0Gb
— Football Manager (@FootballManager) October 10, 2024
The statement goes on to explain that it has been a “difficult development cycle” for Sports Interactive, and that things have been “moving slower than we had predicted.” This led to concerns that the development team was “simply rushing too much and in danger of compromising our usual standards.”
The studio claims that this is the “biggest technical and visual advancement in the series for a generation” and a “crucial juncture in Football Manager’s history,” making the delay unavoidable. Sega and Sports Interactive thanked fans who pre-ordered for their trust but also invited them to contact their retailer if they want a refund. The studio also said that early access will be available ahead of the new release date. A full gameplay reveal is expected to take place at the end of January.
“We are intensely aware that this will be massively disappointing for you. We share that disappointment and are extremely sorry,” the statement said.
It’s a huge move for Football Manager, which is customarily released each November. The highly-regarded sim is a fixture for football fans, who log hundreds or even thousands of hours managing clubs ranging from superpowers like Manchester City to minnows like Notts County. It’s known for its intimidating level of depth and the fascinating stories that can come out of it. It’s so popular that it has resulted in fans from locales like China traveling halfway around the world to see tiny English clubs like the Runcorn Linnets.
Football Manager 25 looks to be a massive update for the annual franchise. In addition to featuring fully-licensed Premier League teams, it will add women’s football to create “one world, one ecosystem.” Sega claims this year’s version will have “more playable leagues and nations than ever,” and that it will feature major technical and visual improvements as it switches to Unity. All of these features represent a major step forward for the franchise, which is known for being fairly conservative with its updates.
When Football Manager 25 does come out, it will be available on PS5, PC, and Xbox, where it will once again be available on Xbox Game Pass.
Kat Bailey is IGN’s News Director as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.