Does this happen to anyone else?

I'm sorry for the misleading title, I just can't put it in a few words.

Has this ever happened to anyone but me? I seem to have fallen in love with all the clubs I've played throughout my career as a manager since CM 03/04. Dag & Red (CM 03/04), AFC Wimbledon (FM 09, FM 10, FM 11 - Thanks to SI Games!), Solihull Moors (FM 07, FM 10, FM 11) and something sort of wonderful, I became a proud fan of Chelsea FC because of CM 03/04. I don't care I'm not even from England. I don't care for any of the clubs from my country, all I can tell you is that I'm a proud blue and hopefully one day I'll go to Stamford Bridge and watch Frank Lampard score a scorcher, Nicolas Anelka passing one into the net, Terry scoring a lucky goal with the header or Didier Drogba doing what he does best; recovering from an injury.

So yes, SI - Thank you for making me a fan of Chelsea FC. You can't possibly imagine how much I love Chelsea because of you.

You're a farking weirdo dude

he definitely isnt weird, there have been numorous people say the same thing!

Im slowly falling in love with FC Santa Claus....

I'm not sure about falling completely in love with a team but i've definitely got soft spots for some of the teams i've managed on CM/FM over the years.

On the flip side, does anybody else find they just can't manage the team they actually support? I've tried starting numerous games with Sunderland on various incarnations of CM/FM but I can never seem to get through so much as half a season with them. I really can't explain it, maybe it's because the defeats are more personal? Or i've got a higher expectancy on the players I bring in to succeed and play well?

Thanks to FM got a soft spot for Everton, Hoffenheim and Plymouth

Still a Chelsea Fan tho!

He's no weirdo, any more than any of us who spend hours playing a footie management sim I keep up with some of the clubs I've managed in CM/FM, all lower league clubs- I visit the team websites, check the tables, news on them etc. Teams like Workington, Stalybridge and so on.

For me its the players. To see a player for the very first time in FM then actually seeing them play in TV is pretty crazy.

I gained a soft spot for AFC Wimbledon and Newcastle through FM.

I still support Melbourne heart and Man U though.

You're a farking weirdo dude

Haha Let's just say that where I come from football is made up of hooliganism and racism. That's just not me.

I developed a soft spot for Stoke now, especially seeming after I left them in 2018 I bought like 4 of the better players I had from them, so even though Im a Newcastle fan through and through i'll follow Stoke in the EPL.

I had a long career as Braintree Town manager a few years ago and after that started following their results, checking how they were doing and even got in touch with the club and ordered a replica shirt xD

I cannot say I agree, but, I do however, always look to see who scored on a saturday afternoon with the team I was managing at that time... e.g. Chartlon at the moment, seeing Wagstaff score last weekend made me smile...

On the flip side, does anybody else find they just can't manage the team they actually support? I've tried starting numerous games with Sunderland on various incarnations of CM/FM but I can never seem to get through so much as half a season with them. I really can't explain it, maybe it's because the defeats are more personal? Or i've got a higher expectancy on the players I bring in to succeed and play well?

Totally agree with you, I hardly ever play as Pompey. I thought I would this year because of the challenge of trying to gain promotion with 14 players, but it's still not right.

I think partly the problem is that your real world assessment of the players doesn't always match the players in the game, so it feels counter intuitive to play the "best" players according to FM when you see their real life counterparts play badly.

I'm not sure about falling completely in love with a team but i've definitely got soft spots for some of the teams i've managed on CM/FM over the years.

On the flip side, does anybody else find they just can't manage the team they actually support? I've tried starting numerous games with Sunderland on various incarnations of CM/FM but I can never seem to get through so much as half a season with them. I really can't explain it, maybe it's because the defeats are more personal? Or i've got a higher expectancy on the players I bring in to succeed and play well?

I shared this opinion for a long time. I think, for me, because the gaps in reality are more exposed when you're managing players you watch for real week-in, week-out. You know how the players should play, so they invariably don't feel perfect. It's difficult to immerse yourself in the simulation. I tend to always prefer managing in leagues i'm not that familiar with, either lower league or foreign leagues. I did break the long trend of not managing Liverpool on FM10, but that was motivated by us being broke and terrible in real life.

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In regards to the OP, my Scottish team is Forfar Athletic thanks to FM. I would have to say that the Norwegian team i'm most fond of is Molde after FM08, and Boavista in Portugal because of FM10, while i know i'll have a very soft spot for Fleetwood Town after a few more seasons. I think it's normal to grow an affinity to the clubs you manage. You will have spent a long time willing them to win in game, and should have good memories associated with the club if your time in charge went well.

On the flip side, does anybody else find they just can't manage the team they actually support? I've tried starting numerous games with Sunderland on various incarnations of CM/FM but I can never seem to get through so much as half a season with them. I really can't explain it, maybe it's because the defeats are more personal? Or i've got a higher expectancy on the players I bring in to succeed and play well?

Agree 100% !

...or Didier Drogba doing what he does best; recovering from an injury.

Absolutely priceless

And no, you're not alone. I hold an affection for every single team where I've had a successful long-term save in the past.

im the same way with worcester because of last years fm

Heh, agree with it all. I personally have a soft spot for boro now because of FM. Only recently though, from FM 2009 when I started playing network games a lot more. Man the trials and tribulations I've been through with that team, from gaining promotion and holding a spot in the top 5 of prem second season up, to losing out on automatic promotion on the last game of the season on goal difference to ****ing Bristol City (see it works both ways, fall in love, and garner an irrational hatred of teams too, Newton's law at work)

There's a gentlemans agreement in place now that in network games noone else is allowed to use Boro even when I don't select them, kinda like retiring a player jersey, the team is retired.(and I always favour them in loan deals etc if they are AI)