Football Manager 26 gets its first reveal

It happened… again. Here is hoping that this year’s Football Manager will actually release and not go through the mess that was late last year, early this year. Finally announced yesterday on the Football Manager Twitter (jump in a bin/Cybertwuk Elon), we got our first idea of FM26 and what to expect. Which isn’t a lot, admittedly, it was only a 30-second video (seen below) that has a better version on the website, which itself has also had a new coat of paint.

The trailer itself is as you expect if you’ve been around for other FM games, as they get a new license, the obvious focus this year being the official addition of the English Premier League. An addition that was meant to come to the game with the non-existent FM25. The first bit of “game footage” being that of the plinth that the EPL ball sits on, with a blurry archway that you see on the pitch at the start of EPL games. The point being driven home is that you are getting the full EPL experience, much like we’ve had during FM24 with the Champions and Europa Leagues.

What is also worth noting at this point is 26 seconds in, with “Match Day first look, coming soon.” The Sports Interactive and a normal human idea of “coming soon” might be a bit different, so I’d like to know more about when that soon happens to be. Though of course, there are other details to pick out from the trailer, first and foremost is the stadium shown in the unfinished game footage, actually looking like a football stadium. I get it, the game has hundreds of teams, but some of those stadiums are hilariously unrealistic in FM24.

It is also worth noting that while we’re being shown off the English Premier League, it is a SEGA-published and Sports Interactive-developed game that is advertising EA Sports FC. Hilarious is one word for it, what sums up the games industry in 2025 is another way of putting it. Practically every in-game shot here is filled with EA’s logos. Though speaking of the in-game shots and presentation that we’re seeing here, it doesn’t look bad.

Football Manager games don’t need to look like a stripper bent over, spreading themselves for you, or what the rest of the game industry goes for. Realistically, you aren’t up in a player’s face unless you’re in a menu, and we know those new-gen faces are a bit PS2-ish. This year’s switch to the Unity Engine could be part of that change in style we’re seeing, and I can’t say I’m too upset with the new look. The grass looks a bit flat, but you aren’t eating it like a cow, so why do you care?

In a very short press release, the team at Sports Interactive and SEGA said: “Sports Interactive is proud to unveil the next release in its unrivalled football management simulation series will [sic] be Football Manager 26.“ I’m sure there can’t be any complaints to that and the fact the series continues, right? Oh wait, to quote Higgins from season 2 of Ted Lasso, “Oh right, the goddamn internet!”

The press release continues: “FM26 promises to take players on a journey to define their footballing destiny with our most immersive and visually rich Football Manager experience yet. The potential for storytelling is redefined by taking players closer to the heart of the beautiful game.

An early snippet of the elevated Match Day experience through the lens of the official Premier League license gives just a taster of what to expect following our move to the Unity engine.”

I’m excited to see more from Football Manager 26 when we get to see more, but for now, I am just excited at the idea of moving on from FM24‘s database. Though I might be one of a small group who aren’t threatened by women’s sport, I’m hoping we still get the addition of women’s football in FM26 too. There is no word on that or much else at this time, but the next several weeks will be interesting. If FM26 follows its previous installments, then we should expect the release sometime in November or December, hopefully.