Lower league/countries issues

I guess there would me a maximum of 3 people including me interested in this, but I'll still ask:

- A-League side Wellington Phoenix don't have a youth squad in the game, but IRL their reserve squad competes against senior clubs from New Zealand in the Phoenix Challenge: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASB_Phoenix_Challenge

It would be cool to have it in the game, and finally Wellington can have a much needed youth/reserve team.

- As a fan of the San Marino Challenge I find it a bit frustrating that (unlike ANY other team in ANY other league) foreigners at San Marino club don't even start the process of acquiring new nationality (no sammarinese nor italian), which would be important to improve the national team. Now is this a bug or it's just the way it's supposed to be?

- No youth squad for MLS teams? That strict 24 men squad rule (those not included get waved!) doesn't really help youth developement: I need 24 senior players for such a crowded schedule, but I don't want to give up prospects because of that. Maybe a youth squad could help?

Any chance the new patch can solve any of this?

- No youth squad for MLS teams? That strict 24 men squad rule (those not included get waved!) doesn't really help youth developement: I need 24 senior players for such a crowded schedule, but I don't want to give up prospects because of that. Maybe a youth squad could help?

Any chance the new patch can solve any of this?

Isnt this the actual MLS rules?

I guess so, but i noticed every MLS club has an affiliated club/academy with same name, so instead of loaning prospects to them (all season, no tutoring etc) I'd rather have a traditional youth team I can control, this would give a better chance of developing youngsters. More like a "formal" issue than anything else.

I guess there would me a maximum of 3 people including me interested in this, but I'll still ask:

- A-League side Wellington Phoenix don't have a youth squad in the game, but IRL their reserve squad competes against senior clubs from New Zealand in the Phoenix Challenge: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASB_Phoenix_Challenge

It would be cool to have it in the game, and finally Wellington can have a much needed youth/reserve team.

Try the Data Issues part of the forum. If you report it there with evidence, it's bound to get looked at.

- As a fan of the San Marino Challenge I find it a bit frustrating that (unlike ANY other team in ANY other league) foreigners at San Marino club don't even start the process of acquiring new nationality (no sammarinese nor italian), which would be important to improve the national team. Now is this a bug or it's just the way it's supposed to be?

This is the way it is supposed to be.

From the following website - http://www.sanmarinosite.com/eng/cittadinanza.html - I have found the following:

To obtain the citizenship it is necessary to renounce any other citizenship and to have effective continued residence for at least 30 years in the territory of the Republic.

How it works in FM is discussed in this thread - http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/182116-Gaining-Sanmarinese-Nationality

No youth squad for MLS teams? That strict 24 men squad rule (those not included get waved!) doesn't really help youth developement: I need 24 senior players for such a crowded schedule, but I don't want to give up prospects because of that. Maybe a youth squad could help?

Any chance the new patch can solve any of this?

I can't help you with MLS as I really know nothing about it but someone will no doubt be in to offer their knowledge at some point.

I guess so, but i noticed every MLS club has an affiliated club/academy with same name, so instead of loaning prospects to them (all season, no tutoring etc) I'd rather have a traditional youth team I can control, this would give a better chance of developing youngsters. More like a "formal" issue than anything else.

But, I susspect this is the way it works in real life.

Thank you Crouchaldinho, so 30 years seem a lot but I can tell you that most 50 years old brazilians turned-sammarinese would still be better than local players in their prime... sigh

Will check the data issues thread as well.

I guess there would me a maximum of 3 people including me interested in this, but I'll still ask:

- No youth squad for MLS teams? That strict 24 men squad rule (those not included get waved!) doesn't really help youth developement: I need 24 senior players for such a crowded schedule, but I don't want to give up prospects because of that. Maybe a youth squad could help?

I could have heard incorrectly but I do believe that the MLS is starting a youth league for the next season.

Its also pretty difficult to have a competitive squad in the MLS that has more than the player limit due to the salary cap. Generation Adidas players dont count against the cap but all of he salaries of the older players adds up quick if you want to have a well rounded team with a couple designated players. Its either all small squad with good player or a large squad of lower ability players who get payed next to nothing.

MLS's youth set-up is bizarre, to say the least, but is still poorly implemented in the game, because of the lack of the college structure. In real life, all MLS teams have their own academies. If a player has been in an academy for at least two years before going to college or signing with a professional team anywhere, the MLS team holds that player's MLS rights.

As an example, Matt Kassel played in the New York Red Bulls academy before he enrolled at the University of Maryland. He declared his intentions to leave college after his junior season at Maryland ended, so the Red Bulls have the right of first refusal on him. If the Red Bulls were to choose not to sign him (as a homegrown player, exempt from the salary cap), he would enter the MLS SuperDraft, available for selection by any team in the league. Similarly, if a player were to skip college and sign with a club in Europe, were he to return to MLS within five years, the team holding his youth rights would get the first shot at signing him, and if they chose not to, he would be given to a team in a weighted lottery, with the worse teams in the league having a better chance at being given the rights to the player.

I have no idea how easily this could be implemented in FM. All teams should have an influx of youth players every year, but these players should not be eligible to play for the senior club unless signed to professional contracts. Maybe at age 18, they could go on an extended loan to one of the lower-division American clubs included in the game, with players being given a prompt to sign them when that loan expires/when they "decide" to turn professional. In any event, MLS needs some major work to be accurately set up.

@manworker: I've played MLS on FM and you can actually build a nice squad staying under the cap, mostly because some very good free agents tend to accept very low contracts (I had international starlets Gai Assulin and Davide Petrucci at 20.000$ per year!), and you really need 24 good players to face league, cup and continental cup which mean 2 games per week during all season. And without a youth squad this means giving up your own prospects, or loaning them away at best.

@arsenalmetro: thanks for the insight. I understand it's something difficult to implement in the game for a number of reasons. I hope SiGames will find away though, as I think managing in the MLS is fun because of its very unique rules and format but that issue with youth/academy is very limitng.