Pre-season Tournaments *Suggestion*

Same as the last two years I'd like to suggest that as well as offering clubs fees when inviting them to participate, I think it would be nice to be able to offer instead the winner a fee.

Thus for example if you're a team from Hong Kong you can invite Tottenham, Ajax and Red Bull New York to play. It estimates that inclusive of tickets, merch and tv rights you have a pool of £4,000,000. From this you choose what % you want to offer the winner and runner-up.

As far as I know this is how pre-season tournaments tend to work IRL and of course following participation everyone involved gets higher merch sales in the area.

Also I'd like to suggest that we actually get invited to take part in similar tourneys. Based on team and league rep, manager nationality and success, international players, etc. Also, we see benefits from doing so.

For example off the top of my head...

1.) You have a thirty something Jamaican international who's been capped 80 times for his country, so you are invited to send a team to a pre-season tourney in Jamaica. As a result of doing so your reputation and relationships within Jamaica and the carib increase and thus your knowledge, so you're more likely to get Jamaican newgens coming through your youth team, or coming through in Jamaica with your club as their favorite. Merch sales increase for a month or two, you're more likely to get a team you played against as a feeder club as your relationship with them has improved.

2.) You're from a smaller (in stature) nation and do well in a big league, to celebrate your success abroad you are invited to take part in a pre-season tourney of your manager's nationality. This increases our reputation at home (and likelyhood of getting the national job), your relationships with local teams and your likelyhood of getting newgens from your own nationality.

3.) After spending several years at a club where you or a big named player became a favorite and then moved on, the former club invites you back to take part in a pre-season tourney.

4.) Most obvious one: Because you're a huge club, you get invited to rich places around the globe to take part in pre-season tourneys for purely financial reasons. It increases your rep there, merch sales and relationships with clubs there.

5.) Teams local to one another play off in a pre-season tourney. The fans of the larger teams get to see them play old rivals, the lower league/ non-league teams get good match revenue. Improved relations, lower league team's grounds are more likely to be used for larger team's reserve/youth matches, better chance of getting one of the other teams as a parent/feeder club as a result.

IRL they're often about money, improving relationships or promoting the 'brand' abroad. In fact often a combination of all three. It would be nice if this was finally shown more realisticly in FM.

Good post and good idea! That would add to the preseason experience and to the long-term game especially with regens in an area you have links with having you as a favourite club. I did not think there was prize money in reality for preseason tournaments. I thought there was only an appearance fee (and obviously a trophy) but if prize money is there in reality then of course it should be brought into the game.

good idea, i like it. would definitely be a good addition. even managing as liverpool, which i almost always do, its very very rare i get invited to any pre-season tournaments... in fact i think only once or maybe twice, inall the seasons ive ever played on fm!!

good idea, i like it. would definitely be a good addition. even managing as liverpool, which i almost always do, its very very rare i get invited to any pre-season tournaments... in fact i think only once or maybe twice, inall the seasons ive ever played on fm!!

That is the same with me for Man United and also if I try to organise a preseason tour of USA and have the MLS loaded in the game no MLS club ever accepts a friendly from me, not even when I am Man United or Real Madrid.

That is the same with me for Man United and also if I try to organise a preseason tour of USA and have the MLS loaded in the game no MLS club ever accepts a friendly from me, not even when I am Man United or Real Madrid.

that may be to do with them being "in-season" when we're not.. if you see what i mean.. i thnk their seasons run at different dates to ours... they run march to october....

that may be to do with them being "in-season" when we're not.. if you see what i mean.. i thnk their seasons run at different dates to ours... they run march to october....

Yeah, that is probably the reason but in reality preseason friendlies are often played between MLS clubs and other clubs.

A very well thought-out thread - I fully support the idea. IRL you often find friendlies between a professional team and local teams from the county (e.g. Gillingham play against the likes of Dover, Faversham, etc; whilst Ipswich play against Bury St Edmonds, and so on). I like all the ideas, and the first one (the Jamaica example) I think would make an exciting addition to the game. I like it!

Some really good ideas here. Really like the first suggestion. Definately think that this would add a bit of much needed spice to the pre-season and would actually give you a real reason for playing your friendlies as opposed to letting the ass man do it all.

Good idea, I'd like to see more focus on pre-season tournaments instead of just the friendly cup. The top 4 in England usually play in tournaments so it'd be a good system for PL teams in the game to warm up and gain some confidence for the new season.

i have for the past year asked for the emirates cup and amsterdam tournament etc to be added as permanents. i would like to see a board influence in pre-season tournaments, i.e. making u play in china for financial reasons etc

i have for the past year asked for the emirates cup and amsterdam tournament etc to be added as permanents. i would like to see a board influence in pre-season tournaments, i.e. making u play in china for financial reasons etc

I think the Amsterdam tournament is already in the game. Ajax already organise a preseason friendly competition every year in the game but maybe the real name can't be used due to licensing reasons.

Ajax do organise a preseason tournament in the game, but it's not under any name i think. I got invited once.

Yes I agree with the OP, the pre-season is one thing that definitely deserves improvement

This is a deffinate. But since 09 is pretty much done with suggestions and improvements it Should be in by FM10 Definitely.

If one were to annually host a pre-season tournament, it would be great if a history for that event were kept (much like the other cups and leagues). It would be great to be able to look back at what clubs were invited in years past, who won the event, and top goal scorer, et cetera.

For those of you who have been beta-testing Football Manager Live, that set-up for re-occuring competitions is pretty sweet.