The Subject Of Sons

Now, I agree with most people here on this forum that the "wonder" of having a son shouldn't be so rare. I mean, how many managers IRL don't have kids? They are human, no matter what their rival team's fans say.

My suggestion is to have a kind of 'son counting system'. In practise this means you would get a son notification email saying your son has just been born, and you'll be able to keep track of his age on your 'Personal' screen.

This would let you know you have a son, so you could begin to plan for his arrival at the club, and stop the inevitable disappointment you get season after season when you open the "New Youth Intake" email, and fail (yet again) to get a son.

This would probably require more thought and planning, as your son could join your Under 18s team at any age between 14-18, so it's not perfect. I'd still like to see it though, if only to stop all the build up you have at the end of each season, thinking about if you might get a son this year.

What do people think?

I love this idea. I think I might even love you.

While I agree that most (if not all) managers have sons, how many of the sons are professional footballers? i would guess its a pretty small percentage, in fact, none spring to mind (although it is 6.50am so im a tad sluggish). In that respect, i think FM has it about right. Dont get me wrong, I'd love to get an in-game son, but i dont think the odds should be weighed in our favour, nor should we be CERTAIN of having one.

While I agree that most (if not all) managers have sons, how many of the sons are professional footballers? i would guess its a pretty small percentage, in fact, none spring to mind (although it is 6.50am so im a tad sluggish). In that respect, i think FM has it about right. Dont get me wrong, I'd love to get an in-game son, but i dont think the odds should be weighed in our favour, nor should we be CERTAIN of having one.

Jamie and Harry Redknapp?

I agree with this idea totally, as it isnt rare in real life to have a manager having a son so why should it be so rare on FM

I agree with this idea totally, as it isnt rare in real life to have a manager having a son so why should it be so rare on FM

You say it isn't rare, but how many managers actually have sons playing football?

Out of every 1000 managers in Europe, probably 50 of them have footballer sons. Out of that, only about 20 of them have footballer sons who play at a high standard.

Jamie and Harry Redknapp?

Maldini, Lampard, Ferguson, Dalglish, Krancjar, Pulis, Weiss...

Now, I agree with most people here on this forum that the "wonder" of having a son shouldn't be so rare. I mean, how many managers IRL don't have kids? They are human, no matter what their rival team's fans say.

My suggestion is to have a kind of 'son counting system'. In practise this means you would get a son notification email saying your son has just been born, and you'll be able to keep track of his age on your 'Personal' screen.

This would let you know you have a son, so you could begin to plan for his arrival at the club, and stop the inevitable disappointment you get season after season when you open the "New Youth Intake" email, and fail (yet again) to get a son.

This would probably require more thought and planning, as your son could join your Under 18s team at any age between 14-18, so it's not perfect. I'd still like to see it though, if only to stop all the build up you have at the end of each season, thinking about if you might get a son this year.

What do people think?

I think this is taking the whole thing too far. Having a son was supposed to be a nice little easter egg that would crop up once in blue moon. Didn't require much coding becuase it just have to give the guy the same surname as you and add the favoured personnel associations. You're talking about investing time in it and turning it into a whole big feature of the game, I think the time could be better spent.

I think this is taking the whole thing too far. Having a son was supposed to be a nice little easter egg that would crop up once in blue moon. Didn't require much coding becuase it just have to give the guy the same surname as you and add the favoured personnel associations. You're talking about investing time in it and turning it into a whole big feature of the game, I think the time could be better spent.

Coding a football playing son wouldn't be much work. Take a random regen from your current club, after having played X years, and give him your surname and put him in favored personnel. No one said it would have to be a future Messi or Ronaldo, just a random regen from the youth team. It shouldn't be that difficult to do and it would be a fun addition for long term gamers.

Although a scouting system etc is too much. Just a random son generator

Jamie and Harry Redknapp?

Maldini, Lampard, Ferguson, Dalglish, Krancjar, Pulis, Weiss...

All good examples, but now list all the managers who don't have sons that are footballers.

I know which will be the bigger list. IMO the current system is about right - common enough that you feel you have the chance of it happening but rare enough that when it does it feels special.

Coding a football playing son wouldn't be much work. Take a random regen from your current club, after having played X years, and give him your surname and put him in favored personnel. No one said it would have to be a future Messi or Ronaldo, just a random regen from the youth team. It shouldn't be that difficult to do and it would be a fun addition for long term gamers.

Eh? You've just exactly described the existing system.

Eh? You've just exactly described the existing system.

Well, I didn't know that since I don't play long term, haha

Then I'd rather ask how far in the game you have to be, before getting a son is relevant. Because it seems that all the OP is asking for, then, is only a few lines of code. It doesn't take long to write a code that gives you a son within a couple of years and then adding a simple age counter. Until he's being generated for your team, he will simply be a number on a screen going "1, 2, 3, 4..". It's more complicated to keep track of your birthday in-game, tbh.

Then it'll simply switch to the current random generator, where a random chance that could increase year after year between age 14 and 18, results in a player getting your surname. How complicated is that?

As for managers having footballer sons, it applies to just about anyone who actually gets a son, since most managers are former footballers themselves (ie. odds are their sons will grow up to love and play the game). In FM terms, most of them will be stuck with something like a 10 overall in stats and play lower league football. And since we're talking youth teams at first, there's a good chance their kid would get on it, although reality will often kick in once they're out of the youth phase and they simply become civilians (ie. freed from their contracts).

All good examples, but now list all the managers who don't have sons that are footballers.

I know which will be the bigger list. IMO the current system is about right - common enough that you feel you have the chance of it happening but rare enough that when it does it feels special.

whs^ theres no contest to which would be the bigger list. I definitely think the system should stay as it is.

All good examples, but now list all the managers who don't have sons that are footballers.

I know which will be the bigger list. IMO the current system is about right - common enough that you feel you have the chance of it happening but rare enough that when it does it feels special.

I agree, I was just pointing out that the Redknapps aren't the only ones.

If Vladamir Weiss calls up Vlad jnr, and the USa qualify taking Bradley jnr with them, they will be the fourth and fifth times a father-son partnership has gone to the WC. The others were Maldini, Krancjar and someone nobody's ever heard of.

There have been a lot of world cups, and a lot of teams in each world cup.

I think SI have got it spot on how it is. It's nice if you have a son but also very unlikely, just as it is irl. Yes, there are a few mananagers of have sons in real life but I'd say its about the same percentage as the amount of people who've had a son on fm.

However, I heard the odds were 1 in 10,000? Surely they're lower than that?

I now have an image in my mind of a football manager being so dedicated to his job that his wife has to email him (or sms) from the hospital to tell him he has a son!!

Bruce?

To be fair, the odds should be slightly lower.

As it's supposed to be a little fun thing for the player then it should happen more often.

It's been in for at least the last two versions and never had it yet.

Not a manager-son combo, but Bojan's Dad is a scout for Barcelona.

There are a good few examples but the prevalence of father and son players is higher, as all top players don't manage, and often the best managers aren't great players. Football talent is at least partly genetic.

Btw I always thought that Bojan snr. was given the job in order to facilitate his son's move to Barcelona.

This may turn out to be very very bad.. imagine this

News:

You have been invited to attend your sons 1st birthday party. Your assistant has made the choice of going to this party of attending your sides champions league final.

Go to Champions League Final Go to your son's 1st Birthday Party

"Noooo Its whited out"

Sorry I just wasted valuble seconds of your life

I think that the chance of getting a son in FM10 should be slightly in our favour

I think that the chance of getting a son in FM10 should be slightly in our favour

That is quite right mate!!

Not a manager-son combo, but Bojan's Dad is a scout for Barcelona.

His dad played for Red Star Belgrade.

I like the idea in principle from the OP. I also agree that not all managers have sons playing, that you know of. But ask yourself, who in their right mind, as a manager, would NOT put their son into football academies. You may not have heard of some of the "sons" quite simply because they may still only be 14 or 15, or younger. In the same breath, because perhaps they're at clubs outside of the top divisions, or even outside of England?

I do think the "son" thing should be a bit more prevalent, especially as Becks has 3 sons, all of whom could become footballers, and its not like brothers have never played either, so I think the option of having more than 1 son become a footballer within the game world, is also something we should expect.

I think we should be able to name our sons, y'know, just like real life.

I think this is taking the whole thing too far. Having a son was supposed to be a nice little easter egg that would crop up once in blue moon. Didn't require much coding becuase it just have to give the guy the same surname as you and add the favoured personnel associations. You're talking about investing time in it and turning it into a whole big feature of the game, I think the time could be better spent.

Spot on. My thoughts exactly.

Why not have a button, saying "Make baby?"

Then you can choose whether you want one or not!

"Make Wohoo!" (Sims way of saying making a baby lol)

P.S Steve Bruce has a son called Alex Bruce

Maldini, Lampard, Ferguson, Dalglish, Krancjar, Pulis, Weiss...

Paul Simpson and his son Jake at Shrewsbury

I add my sons into the game using the editor. I try to make their abilities fairly random (i do like to make sure there good enough for at least league 1).

Slightly off topic, but I do like the thought of adding more personal details to the game e.g family, car, home e.t.c.

Sergio Busquets' dad was a Barca keeper back in the 80's I think, sure he's on the staff there.

i think football manager need to get more in the the personal details at gareth hale's said. A manager's life isn't just on the pitch, it's at home. Maybe doing odd jobs with the community. I remember on FIFA 08 you were offered a choice between doing things and diferent answers gave u different outcomes. You could be a community friendly manager... or a boring and tight bastard with no feelings for the community for example.

and the wages we earn... whats the point, we should be able to spend them on homes and cars. there's also no IRL situations, drink driving and crashes drugs... i've never seen a player in game that gets a drug ban. or manager player bust ups. it just needs that edge. the manager-player reltionship needs to be improved on. i just hope some of these things are added soon.

Good. God. No.

Good. God. No.

Wow! So many reasons why not to do this!