Well, tomorrow is finally the day. Football Manager 27 releases into Advance Access for free between October 29th and November 3rd, at which point you can only continue playing if you pre-order. I am beyond excited to get hands-on, especially with all we’ve seen over the last couple of weeks. With that in mind, I wanted to give several save ideas across the globe and many from previous saves I’ve done myself.

Some with history, some with a bit of a challenge, and maybe one just to give you that in to women’s football instead of playing that one club one season save with a Premier League team that you already support. I have two national teams, both with their own challenges, a trip to Japan, a journey north to Scotland, even the lower leagues of England, and if you’re extra adventurous, a journeyman with a bit of an extra challenge. Of course, if you have save ideas, drop them below.

Fujieda MYFC, J2 League –

There is a mad little history to Fujieda, including a Brazilian-born Japanese national player, MyFootballClub, and the growth of the J League itself. In its current form, the club was formed in 2009 after the English Industrial and Provident Society MyFootballClub kind of bought Fujieda Nelson and later merged with Shizuoka FC to create Fujieda MYFC. Originally spending a couple of years in the regional leagues, getting promoted to the Japan Football League (4th tier), and eventually making it into the inaugural year of the J3 League, the team sort of sat there for several years. They only wound up promoted to the J2 League in 2023.

I found Fujieda by accident in FM24 during a journeyman through Asia for a bit of freshness, and I fell in love. The purple and white kits, the odd rules of the J League, and the fact that at the time it was a summer (February through November) league – it was practically all new to me. You can’t just sign 6′7″ Spanish kids for your defense, as there is a foreign player limit; you have quite a pacey league, and the leagues are quite competitive – the 2025 J2 league, the top 7 were within 8 points of winning the league.

Tranmere, League Two (4th tier) –

After last night, I almost wanted to say Fleetwood, but let’s not talk about Arsenal’s latest defeat at Highbury. Technically the third team on the Mersey, Tranmere Rovers is one of those teams that more or less make up parts of the league without ever getting into the Premier League. The team’s heights came in the early 90s: Two years after the Premier League started, Portsmouth, Leicester City, Swindon Town, and Tranmere were in the First Division (Championship) play-offs, with Swindon beating Tranmere in the Semi-finals and beating Leicester City at Wembley on May 31st, 1993. Since then, it has been down, down, down.

Most recently, it was in the National League (5th tier) from about 2014 to 2019. Though if we’re talking about history, we could note Arsenal being beaten at their Highbury ground in 1973, also during the League Cup. Like a lot of teams, Tranmere has a storied history of highs and heartbreak, as well as a strong rivalry with “Hollywood United,” Wrexham. It is a challenge, especially given the financials of a semi-full Prenton Park and an aging squad signed by previous management. Finishing 21st of 24 last season, two points above relegation, it could be a chance to rebuild and topple rivals and giants alike.

SPFL Challenge –

A draw would have done it, but no, let’s send a goalkeeper up for a free kick with a minute to go. Dominated by two teams since Alex Ferguson and Aberdeen won in 1985, the Scottish First Division/Premiership has been won by Rangers or Celtic in one form or another since the dawn of time, so the challenge is simple. Well, easy to explain anyway: Pick any other team in the top four tiers of Scottish football and try to win the league, though some are more financially easier than others. Honestly, I wanted to do a paragraph or two on a handful of these teams.

From Tony Bloom’s super-computer/wannabe Moneyball machine, Hibs and their rank-rotten form as of late, Stenhousemuir and Marvin Bartley’s astonishing Championship run right now, or make yourself unsackable and become the David Martindale for Livingston, where David Martindale tells David Martindale that David Martindale takes over for David Martindale. Several teams could make this fun or challenging for one reason or another, but I’ll leave that up to you.

Scotland National Team –

Speaking of a challenge, here is one for you. Scott McTominay, Lewis Ferguson, Lennon Miller, Ryan Christie, Billy Gilmour, John McGinn, and Ben Gannon-Doak, there are only two names in there born after 2004. The talents in Scottish football that are considered generational are effectively aging out, and it is difficult to say you’re excited about Lawrence Shankland up top at 31, Liam Kelly as third-choice goalkeeper for the laughs, or pretending that Jack Hendry or Grant Hanley can even play football. Heading into the 2030 World Cup and beyond, you have to believe some of these players are on their way out.

Up front we’ve got Barney Stewart, Adedire Mebude, Emilio Lawrence. In midfield we’ve got Findlay Curtis, Kyle Glasgow, Tyler Fletcher, Bailey Rice. Then in defense, Luke Graham, Connor Allan, Callan Hamill, Charley Oosenbrugh, to pull a couple of names from the future out of a hat. I’m all for a goalkeeper in their 30s, but replacements/backups for Angus Gunn, Scott Bain, and Jon McCracken are few and far between for consistent game time and at a good level. Going into the next decade of international competitions with this squad will be a challenge.

Newcastle United, WSL 2 –

It annoys and saddens me to know we aren’t getting an expansion to the number of leagues on the women’s football side of Football Manager; it is a side that should be growing every year. However, I wanted to include Newcastle, not really as a challenge given its real-life league placement, but rather as an introduction for some to the women’s football side of Football Manager. There are good players, a good backing, and a good chance of the team getting promoted into the WSL next season, giving you time to get up to speed with the team and set out long-term plans.

Of course, there isn’t a massive history; there isn’t much to add. It is just the club that’s kind of expected to make that jump up. It is whether you can stay up there in the WSL with the giants of Chelsea, Man City and United, Arsenal, London City Lionesses, and so on, or will you be a Charlton Athletic with seven losses in seven games?

USWNT, 2027 World Cup –

Sticking with the women for a minute, let’s talk about the elephant in next year’s World Cup room, shall we? The US Women’s National Team (USWNT) was knocked out in the Round of 16 at the last World Cup and only qualified as second in the group, which doesn’t sound too bad. The USWNT has either won, came runner-up, or ended up in third place; eight out of nine times the US has been on the podium. If you don’t take the mantle, Emma Hayes and Lindsay Heaps will have a mountain to climb if they even qualify for next year’s World Cup.

The USWNT are set to take on El Salvador in CONCACAF qualifiers in November, and looking ahead, they’ll go on to face Jamaica in the Semi-finals before facing Canada in the finals, with all winning semi-finalists qualifying for the World Cup. This could be make-or-break for the USWNT, arguably the national team that was helped by the 1972 ruling on Title IX, but could also now be on the verge of being surpassed by the superior European-centric academy/grassroots system. It is a good story-based save that has large repercussions to follow on from it.

Unemployed to build a nation –

Honestly, I thought it would have been easier to come up with seven save ideas for FM27, but I’ve run through a good portion of the saves I’ve actually done myself. This one is a bit trickier, because I’m not just suggesting you start unemployed then take the first Premier League job (Michael Carrick) that comes along. I’m saying to start with nothing: No coaching badges, no experience, no job. This was my latest save in FM26, and I’m about three jobs in plus the national team, which isn’t easy. Of course Football Manager isn’t a difficult game, but this is a truly long-term save.

Typically the “Build A Nation” saves are about the national club coefficients, which ordinarily already puts nations like England, Spain, France, Italy, Germany, Portugal, and the Netherlands out of the running. You want to go to the weird places: Scotland, Denmark, Switzerland, Cyprus, Bulgaria, Ireland, and so on, taking them from 23rd to top five or even toppling England in first. That’s the fun part: You can’t win it alone; you need title rivals winning in the continental competitions too. You need the domestic league to be competitive, but also strong enough to topple the giants.

No, I haven’t revolutionized the save idea concept, but I wanted to give some outside-the-box ideas. FM streamers and video people bang on about Flamengo, Fluminense, Fiorentina, Diósgyőri VTK, the fallen giants of Hamburger SV, Real Zaragoza, AS Saint-Étienne, and so on. If I gave it more time, I’d probably find a few ideas hidden metaphorically down the back of the couch, but these will do. Have any ideas of your own? Tell us about them. Tell us what your save is going to be, both during Advanced Access and once Football Manager 27 releases properly on November 10th.

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