The Ultimate Football Manager Challenge - Silver Age Archive

Good to see more people starting this challenge - as well as a couple of "old faces" returning!!

Regarding starting points to the challenge, I'm undecided on what I think may be the best approach - I've always tried to take jobs in the highest divisions, but as has been stated by others, those jobs have probably been in "lesser" nations.

I started in one of the Irelands and then progressed to China, then to Korea, where I got the sack.

This then led me to Scotland and Aberdeen who were really struggling when I took over and I only stayed there for thirteen matches, winning only three and losing ten, so I resigned before I was sacked - I'll include details in my end of season review.

My reputation is still only "useful" and I'm now in my 8th season (I think - I can't check as I'm at work)

After Aberdeen, Pohang in Korea became available, so I've applied and last night I got the job - although I haven't done anything there yet as I stopped to watch The Masters Golf finish!!

I did, however, notice that Pohang are in the quarter finals of the Asian Champs League........I'm totally going to try and "Vike" That competition!!!

For all newbies, it really is worth persevering with this challenge as it is fun, frustrating, painful, tedious, all at once - I love it!!

Not a whole lot to report as the season pretty much played out like the one previous , coming in best of the rest though trailing the Big 4 . Sporting Lisbon were once again untouchable. The only highlight was knocking out Benfica on away goals to play in the Taca de Portugal final which was lost to Sporting . I have now lost finals in Norway , England and Portugal . Another summer to endure of been pillaged by a whole host of bigger clubs and then sitting down and rebuilding to get the same results brings a certain frustration but I have a feeling things are about to change , an approach for my services has been made but i guess you'll find out the result next season - And No it aint Sporting

Internationally things are a little better as Uruguay are sitting 2nd in world cup qualifying after 6 games trailing Copa America winners and World NO 1 Argentina , with Colombia one point behind . Brazil are surprisingly 5th.

Uruguay's next opponents Chile prop up the group.

Season     Team             Country     Position    Notes          
2015    Varbergs BoIS       Sweden        12th      
2016    Varbergs BoIS       Sweden         4th   
2017    Sandnes Ulf         Norway          --
2018    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         2nd      Promoted
2019    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         8th
2020    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         3rd
2021    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         3rd
2022    MK Dons             England       16th
2023    MK Dons             England        8th
2024    Ipswich Town        England        1st      Promoted
2025    Ipswich Town        England        6th
2026    Red Bull Salzburg   Austria        1st      Bundesliga and OFB-Cup Winners
2027    Vitória Guimarães   Portugal       5th
2028    Vitória Guimarães   Portugal       5th

Challenge Progress

Club

1/10 top domestic leagues - Austria

1/10 domestic cups - Austria

0/5 club continental championships

0/1 club world championship

International

2/5 continental tournaments - ACON Senegal 2025 - AFC Australia 2027

0/2 world tournaments

I started in Korean second division and now when I'm in top division it seems really difficult to step up. There's no money and the club's rep doesn't rise, not to mention mine. It's going to take extreme luck and/or many seasons to slowly build them up from lower to mid table obscurity.

Doing the same in South Africa (starting from second division) was much easier in FM 15 when I was doing Pentagon.

Just finished my first season, wanted to have a go at seeing how this table works so thought I'd post an update. Took a job in Wales just to get a foot on the ladder picked up a coaching badge and had a pretty good win percentage. Planning to move onto a better league now.

                                Leagues        Cups
Season  NAT  Club            1st      2nd    1st  2nd   Cont       Notes and Achievements
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2015/16 WAL  Aberystwyth     8th             SF    SF            Took over after 14 games in 10th. Finished 8th. Resigned end of season.

Just finished my first season, wanted to have a go at seeing how this table works so thought I'd post an update. Took a job in Wales just to get a foot on the ladder picked up a coaching badge and had a pretty good win percentage. Planning to move onto a better league now.

                                Leagues        Cups
Season  NAT  Club            1st      2nd    1st  2nd   Cont       Notes and Achievements
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2015/16 WAL  Aberystwyth     8th             SF    SF            Took over after 14 games in 10th. Finished 8th. Resigned end of season.

Great to see someone finally start in Wales. I failed that in FM15 and had to restart. What I can say from experience is be patient and build your reputation slowly, dont get gready to change clubs too fast unless the new club you want approaches you.

We finished 7th this time. The team was very inconsistent for the most part, but they kicked into gear in the last quarter of the season. Even though I'm happy with solid, mid table finishes, I don't really see room for improvement.

We're constantly in the red, despite me being careful with the WB. We have a big stadium, but very few spectators. The reputation rises slowly or not at all.

When I apply for jobs with better Korean clubs, I get laughed off.

In the cup, we went out immediately.

Table

Season     Team            League               Position       Domestic Cup       Continental Cup         Notes 

2015       Goyang Hi FC    K League Challenge   5th           4th rnd                -                  took over 13 games to go, 7th place
2016       Goyang Hi FC    K League Challenge   1st           5th rnd                -   
2017       Goyang Hi FC    K League Classic     6th           1/4 finals             -    
2018       Goyang Hi FC    K League Classic     7th           4th rnd                -                

Challenge Progress

Club

0/10 top domestic leagues

0/10 domestic cups

0/5 club continental championships

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments

0/2 world tournaments

I've finally landed a job!

Its taken until April, and it was my third interview, but I have become manager of Dungannon Swifts in the Danske Bank Premier in Northern Ireland. Four points adrift at the bottom of the league with three games to go, but the fixtures are against the two teams directly above us, and then the team in 7th, so I'm hoping that two wins might be enough to keep us off the bottom. 11th place would see us in a relegation playoff, and if that's the case, I'd take that just now. Oh, and somehow we're in the final of the Irish Cup against Linfield, so there's even an outside chance (very outside as Linfield are currently 2nd) of some silverware.

I'll do a proper update at the end of the season. A couple of quick questions though:

- How do you add the club badges to your posts? They make the updates look really good!

- I've forgotten to take screenshots when I took the post, but I'll take some at the end of the season. Would this be ok?

Tommy Tusker - Where do you think you'll get a job now? Any preferences for your next post?

Shirajzl - Seems like you've made a solid start in South Korea. Do you think you'll stay with Goyang or move onto a bigger club?

threelions1goal - How did your Pohang team get on in the Champions League?

Kaiserwatman - Uruguay seem to be doing well. Is it Porto?

How's everyone else's games going?

- How do you add the club badges to your posts? They make the updates look really good!

You need to find the image URL of the club logo. You can look for the team on wikipedia, then right-click on the logo. It should say something like "Open Image in New Tab", you do that and copy the link on top of the new tab. Then you add it in your update like this:

 

[center]
[img=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/3f/Dungannon_Swifts.png]
[/center]

It will look something like this:

Nice to see this thread so active again with so many new challengers. Good luck to everyone!

Shirajzl - Seems like you've made a solid start in South Korea. Do you think you'll stay with Goyang or move onto a bigger club?

I'd like to move to a better resourced club in Korea, but I can't see it happening. My rep is still "low".

Numero Uno Gunner - I have added a few more nations, have 8 in total now and was attempting to get a top flight club, preferably in SA but wasn't too fussed. Couldn't even get an interview so I've taken over at FC Cape Town in the South African First Division. They were second bottom after 16 games, I've won one and lost one so far. Some decent players but were lacking any kind of depth in a few positions. Managed to bring in some free transfers to plug the gaps. Wouldn't send me on a coaching course due to finances so will have to bide my time.

Kaiserwatman - Uruguay seem to be doing well. Is it Porto?

Yeah Uruguay are indeed doing quite well though are an ageing side , currently sitting 5th in the world and looking like potential dark horses in the World Cup with stars like Demarco , Bentancur , Alvarez , Gimenez amongst others currently in the side . Cabelerro is truly the star of the side in a Vidal role tho currently out with a broken leg. The current qualifying campaign though i have yet to visit Argentina and Brazil.

You are indeed correct , it was FC Porto who made the approach for my services at the end of last season though that campaign has not finished as of yet .

So, my life as a manager begins! Taking over Dungannon Swifts, rooted to the bottom of the Danske Bank Premier League in Northern Ireland. Three games to go, four points adrift, it looked a tall order. However, back-to-back 3-1 victories over relegation rivals Carrick and Warrenpoint, with on loan striker Paul Smyth grabbing a brace in each, we rose to the lofty heights of 10th going into the final game of the season. The pressure well and truly got to us, and we meekly surrendered 3-0 at home to Ballymena. However, Carrick and Warrenpoint failed to capitalise, and survival was ensured. Mission accomplished.

The icing on the cake came two weeks later, where we faced Linfield in the Northern Irish FA Cup final. Without our star striker, who was ineligible due to being on loan from our opponents, we were forced to play Gary Liggett, his first appearance after a 3 month injury lay-off with a torn hamstring. Cometh the hour, and Liggett won a dodgy penalty in the 76th minute of a tepid final. Up he stepped, and sent the keeper the wrong way. 1-0, and I was dancing around my technical area. Expecting an onslaught, I composed myself for a nervous 15 minutes, but it didn't happen. Linfield barely created a chance, and we held on for a famous victory.

So here I am, four games into the challenge, and my first piece of silverware tucked away in the cabinet. However, most of my squad are out of contract, and despite my best efforts, I'm still two attacking midfielders and two full backs short going into the first day of the season.

Weirdly, I applied for a couple of under-23 posts in the run up to the Olympics, and I've taken on the challenge of South Korea. I'm not expecting to even get out of the group, but I was hoping that it might help to raise my profile in the country and aid me getting a club job out there in the future.

Speaking of the future, I don't see a long term one for me at Dungannon, but I'm only going to move for the right opportunity.

Season        Team             Position      Notes and Achievements
2015/16      Dungannon     10th          Won Northern Irish FA Cup and kept Dungannon up after taking over with 3 games to go

Challenge Progress

Club

0/10 top domestic leagues (Insert nations)

1/10 domestic cups (Northern Irish FA Cup - Dungannon)

0/5 club continental championships ()

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments ()

0/2 world tournaments ()

Year 1 Down

Well my first year was challenging to say the least, the first half of the season was a complete waste. I didnt get a chance to buy players and the squad was horrendous. I stole a few draws but nothing to write home about.

Once the transfer window opened up I was able to strengthen the squad a bit but after a few good results (which strangely coincided with other relegation challenges getting good results) I slipped straight back to last with no end in sight.

I found the defensive tactics were not working at all, I had to play more aggressive just to stay in the game. I refuse to give up though, now to scout out some potential jobs. Stay tuned for more stories of the unemployable

Season	Team 	 	Country	    League           Position	Notes          
16/17	Tolima Real	Columbia    Second Division  16th	Sacked with 1 game left to play. 

m1987 - Hope your experience at Tolima helps you get a new job. Maybe you picked up a bit of Spanish, or are able to impress chairmen with your salsa dancing moves. Or picked up some useful drug cartel contacts. I'm sure it will work out.

#1G- Excellent start to your trophy cabinet. I think U23 posts can help, especially if the national job becomes available, although South Korea would be a lot bigger than when I did it with China. I hope you get offered a better domestic job, or arer able to make something of Swifts.

KWMan - Good luck at Porto. When you say the season hasn't finished yet, do you mean your first full season in charge, or did you take them over with games remaining in a season?

TommyT - FC Cape town are a pretty good side to pick up in the 1st division. Quite a few people have had success with them. Wouldn't be surprised if someone actually became champions with them. h no, that;'s put pressure on you now. Sorry.

shirajzl - So you're sticking with the defunct logo. Are you a Christian? Hope your loyalty (even if enforced) to Goyang pays off next season

3L1G - Shouldn't that now be called mclarking the competition. i suppose not. Taking over a club before the finals of the Libertadores has pretty much superglued that label to me.

Im a gent in waiting Currently managing Columbia Under20's whilst I wait on an opportunity, if nothing else the minor international experience may improve my rep to get my into the Brazilian third division

mclarke1987, too bad you lose your job in Columbia, but I hope you come back there and rejoin with the Tolima Real! Enjoy your journey in Columbia!

shirajzl - So you're sticking with the defunct logo. Are you a Christian? Hope your loyalty (even if enforced) to Goyang pays off next season

Haha, I am, but that's not the reason I kept the logo. I just can't be bothered to find a good one.

Just a quick one to have a rant, really. Real Salt Lake made an approach to Dungannon for me, after I had applied for their vacant manager's job. However, they couldn't reach an agreement over compensation for me, so I'm not heading stateside. So frustrating.

I've applied for the job at Columbus Crew, and have also just been interviewed for the vacancy at Beijing Rehne, who have just been relegated. Whatever happens, I can't see me staying at Dungannon until the end of the season. I'm never going to be able to build a squad capable of winning the title, and I've already nabbed a cup win. The board have refused to allow me to begin my coaching badges, which isn't helping either.

After finally getting a break and taking control of an elite club , FC Porto won the Champions League in 2027 and have regularly played in the latter end of the competitions the first challenge was to dethrone Sporting Lisbon who had won the previous three Primeira Liga's . Given Benfica had won the two previous to that it was a pretty barren domestic spell for the Dragões . The previous manager Nuno had employed a similiar style of play so there was no need to change things dramatically as the season kicked off. Over the course of the first 15 games Sporting and Porto regularly switched places at the top of the table before the first clash of the two giants at Estádio José Alvalade which Sporting won.

They also won the next encounter in the Taça de Portugal a competition they went on to win though they left the door open in the Taça da Liga after failing to qualify for the semi finals .

FC Porto beat Paços de Ferreira and then Vitória de Setúbal in the final to claim their first trophy of the season.

The league continued down the same lines constantly switching places as the odd poor result by either side swung the title on its head , Goal difference was also pretty even but it was under pressure where Sporting finally faltered meaning the final game of the season between the two which the media craved as the showdown was irrelevant as FCP lifted the title with one game to spare .

Liga NOS currently in Europes Top 5 leagues and with Portugal highly ranked within World football it was no surprise to see the Big 3 emerge from the Champions League group stages . First to fall were Sporting Lisbon who lost 5-4 to Tottenham in the first knockout stage . FCP defeated Shakhtar Donetsk 5-3 on agg . Benfica deposed of Inter 3-2. Benfica then beat Arsenal who had given FCP many problems in the group stages 2-1 whilst FCP endured a ding dong battle with Bayern winning 3-2 . Benfica finally came unstuck in extra time v PSG in the semis 3-2 as FCP defeated Athletico 6-5 in a pulsating tie.

And so it came - Hampden Park against the former manager Nuno and his team lead by star striker Rui Pedro who had come through the FCP ranks . It wasn't to be as a bullet header from Rui Pedro on 15 minutes proved to be the only goal as PSG were crowned Champions of Europe for the 3rd time .

Vitória Guimarães finished 4th , bettering their previous bests under my management so will take some solice from that . Nothing of interest available so will be staying put for another bash at the champions league and bide my time whilst the World Cup opens up some vacancies

Qualifying is still going well with Uruguay despite getting hammered in Rio which didn't exactly go down well but all remains on course for qualification for World Cup 30 .

Season     Team             Country     Position    Notes          
2015    Varbergs BoIS       Sweden        12th      
2016    Varbergs BoIS       Sweden         4th   
2017    Sandnes Ulf         Norway          --
2018    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         2nd      Promoted
2019    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         8th
2020    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         3rd
2021    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         3rd
2022    MK Dons             England       16th
2023    MK Dons             England        8th
2024    Ipswich Town        England        1st      Promoted
2025    Ipswich Town        England        6th
2026    Red Bull Salzburg   Austria        1st      Bundesliga and OFB-Cup Winners
2027    Vitória Guimarães   Portugal       5th
2028    Vitória Guimarães   Portugal       5th
2029    FC Porto            Portugal       1st      Liga NOS and Taça da Liga Winners

Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 top domestic leagues - Austria , Portugal

2/10 domestic cups - Austria , Portugal

0/5 club continental championships

0/1 club world championship

International

2/5 continental tournaments - ACON Senegal 2025 - AFC Australia 2027

0/2 world tournaments

Club

International

Ok so after spending 2017 closing out with the u20's columbian squad I couldn't get a job, made a decent run at the World Cup but it wasnt to be unfortunately. I applied for more jobs than I can count and as 2018 was drawing to a close I opted to add some extra leagues, nothing fancy but I ended up getting a job at KL Spa another team destined for relegation but this time in the Malaysian Premier League. Fortunately I had time to recruit prior to the season start and stretching my budget a bit I was able to put together a half decent squad.

Come mid-season we looked to be going up, sat in 2nd and 1 point shy of first, but then came the FA Cup I managed to get results there but at the cost of my league performance, I managed to reach the Finals but luck was against me. Season went pretty much downhill and finished in 6th, still safer than I initially expected so not too worried. If I get my contract renewed my plan is to push for promotion and maybe snag me a trophy for the cabinet. Wish me luck

Season	Team 	 	Country	    League           Position	Notes          
16/17	Tolima Real	Columbia    Second Division  16th	Sacked with 1 game left to play.
2019    KL Spa          Malaysia    Premier League   6th        FA Cup Finalists, Avoided relegation

Year	Team 	 	Country	    Tournament            Finished	Notes          
2017	U20's    	Columbia    Under 20's World Cup  QF	        Went out in QF on penalties.
2019	U20's    	Columbia    SA Championship       2nd	        Runner's up (WC Round 2)

mclarke1987, great job on coming back from behind like the way you make the U-20 in the knockout tournament. One question: will you back to Tolima Real for another try after you are getting good at Kuala Lumpur?

Season 2022/23: Algeria

In September 2022 having noticed that the African Cup of Nations was coming up soon I applied for the vacant managerial post for the Algerian national team. The reigning champions had been without a manager since 11/02/2019 when the previous manager retired. And I was appointed to my first international post on the 18/09/2022.

We had four friendlies spread between October and November before the African Cup of Nations kicked off in January. Our form was iffy to say the least as we beat Libya 1-0 away, lost 1-0 to Togo at home, then lost 2-0 to Germany and finally won 5-1 against Saudi Arabia.

In the group stage of the ACN we kicked off against Egypt winning 2-1 after going a goal down. This was followed by comfortable 2-0 wins against Zambia and Mali.

The Quarter Final paired us with South Africa where we again went a goal down before recovering in the second half to win 3-1.

The Semi Final against Senegal saw us go a goal down in the first half again. Again we were able to drag ourselves back into it by equalising in the second half and the winner coming in extra time.

The Final saw us pitted against Ghana, the highest FIFA ranked African team at 12, and contrary to our previous form we took the lead early in the first half and 3-0 up before Ghana pulled one back, we scored another and then Ghana rounded off the scoring making the final score 4-2 and giving me my first international silverware.

Club

1/10 top domestic leagues (GRE)

2/10 domestic cups (GRE, ENG)

0/5 club continental championships ()

0/1 club world championship ()

International

1/5 continental tournaments (ACN - Algeria)

0/2 world tournaments

Seasons:

CLUB CAREER
						Leagues		Cups
Season	NAT	Club			Division	1st	2nd	1st	2nd		Cont.	CWC	Other & Notes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2015/16	GRE	Panaigialeios		B division	8th		n/a					Last 9 games
2016/17	GRE	Panaigialeios		B division	1st		round 2					Promoted
2017/18	GRE	Panaigialeios		Superleague	5th		round 2					3rd in Euro playoff 
2018/19	GRE	Panaigialeios		Superleague	1st		Winners					League and Cup winners
2020/21	ENG	Newcastle United	EPL		5th		round 3	round 2				qualified for Europa league
2021/22	ENG	Newcastle United	EPL		3rd		Won	Won				Won Europa League








INTERNATIONAL CAREER
		Rank		Cups
Year	Nation		FIFA	NL	World	Cont.	Conf.	Other & Notes
2023	Algeria		15th			Won		Up 17 in FIFA rank

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Its been a pretty uneventful season domestically in Northern Ireland. We finished a respectable 8th, having endured a couple of horrific runs throughout the season where we couldn't buy a win. Paul Smyth was yet again our stand out performer, netting 14 goals in 26 appearances in the league. We crashed out of both cups early, which isn't a massive issue really.

My contract is coming to an end, and I've decided its time to try and move on to pastures new. I'll be grateful for Dungannon for giving me my first job, and landing my first piece of silverware. However, I don't feel I can take them any further, and they can't even afford to send me on any coaching courses. The board have been reluctant to allow me to move on, so I'm taking matters into my own hands. That said, I'm finding it incredibly difficult to even get to the interview stage at the moment.

Internationally, I accepted the Congo job, but resigned without actually taking charge of a game, as I was offered the Cameroon job. We've made a solid start, and are now one win away from the 2018 World Cup. Roll on the final qualifier away at bottom of the group Tanzania. Following that, I've got two CHAN qualifiers before the end of the year. I've never even heard of CHAN, so can anyone shed any light on it for me? I know it doesn't count towards the challenge, but I'm still going to try and win it, just to try and boost my reputation a little.

Club
Season        Team             Position      Notes and Achievements
2015/16      Dungannon     10th          Won Northern Irish FA Cup and kept Dungannon up after taking over with 3 games to go
2016/17      Dungannon     8th            A solid but unspectacular season

Season        Team              Notes and Achievements
2016/17      Congo              Resigned without playing a game
2016/17      Cameroon        One win away from WC qualification

Challenge Progress

Club

0/10 top domestic leagues (Insert nations)

1/10 domestic cups (Northern Irish FA Cup - Dungannon)

0/5 club continental championships ()

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments ()

0/2 world tournaments ()

Following that, I've got two CHAN qualifiers before the end of the year. I've never even heard of CHAN, so can anyone shed any light on it for me? I know it doesn't count towards the challenge, but I'm still going to try and win it, just to try and boost my reputation a little.

CHAN is a tournament where you can only play domestic based players . I never gave it a second's thought when i managed in africa

I intend to play out a second season at KL Spa, then go back to Columbia, whether I get Tolima Real I'm not sure, I have been keeping an eye though, they got promoted straight back then finished the season with 2 points, then put back up again. So despite me falling short at the end of the season my 21pts feels quite respectable lol I would like another crack though, Columbia will definitely me by first top division title. Although Im looking for a new international team cos I want to move out from the u20's I doubt i'll get any half decent opportunities for that.

African teams seem to be easiest to get for me to get on the international ladder but then I'm currently a few years further into it.

I've just resigned from Algeria as I've noticed the Uruguay job is available and it's a Copa America year hoping I can fit in two international tournaments in one year.

edit: Just been given the job and like Algeria they are the defending champs

Mini update with World Cup Qualifying 2030 . Uruguay have safely negotiated qualification and will board a plane for Italy come June . Defeats were in Rio (4-1) , that didn't go down well at all and a surprise 2-0 defeat in Santiago.

Argentina will start as favourites with Portugal and Germany seen as the best of the European Nations . I guess you can never rule out the Italians either given its in their own back yard .

World ranked 5th Uruguay will be seen as dangerous opponents providing they remain relatively injury free.

EDIT : Uruguay will play Belgium , Cameroon and El Salvador in the group stages

@kaiserwatman - Thanks for that. I've never heard of it, and can't imagine I've got many players eligible! Congratulations on qualification. Fingers crossed you can lead Uruguay all the way.

@mclarke1987 - Good luck in getting a job back in Colombia!

@blackdevil - Here's hoping you can land the continental double then.

I'm struggling to get a job again. I'm ticking along with Cameroon, and have managed to get my reputation up to 15% (three quarters of the first star) by qualifying for the World Cup. Fingers crossed that might help me land a domestic job somewhere. I've had a couple of interviews, but no offers. How did you guys approach interviews in the earlier years? Did you say you'd follow all of their philosophies? Agree with all their financial demands? I'm interested to figure out where I'm going wrong.

Year 3

I'll start with the International cos I only had one game lol, 8-0 victory over usa, which is a great way to say good-bye as I've decided to resign from the team, it may take me a while to find another international gig but I want to play with the senior teams now even if that means taking on a club with no real hope of international glory.

As far as the club goes I got knocked out the FA Cup in the first game which was disappointing to say the least but the league went almost perfect, 19w, 1d, 2l - nothing to be sniffed at, secured promotion and championship with games to spare. Again though I'll be resigning from the club, my intention is to go back to South America; Columbia ideally Tolima just avoided relegation so figures crossed they sack the manager and I can get the job but if not I'll take anything I can get my hands on.

Season	Team 	 	Country	    League           Position	Notes          
16/17	Tolima Real	Columbia    Second Division  16th	Sacked with 1 game left to play.
2019    KL Spa          Malaysia    Premier League   6th        FA Cup Finalists, Avoided relegation
2020    KL Spa          Malaysia    Premier League   1st        Champions, QF of Malaysia Cup

Year	Team 	 	Country	    Tournament            Finished	Notes          
2017	U20's    	Columbia    Under 20's World Cup  QF	        Went out in QF on penalties.
2019	U20's    	Columbia    SA Championship       2nd	        Runner's up (WC Round 2)

Great to see a lot of "newcomers" here.

kaiser great progress, I miss playing with Porto, such a great team

numero uno great winning a cup so early and get a international job

mcclarke champion in Malaysia already is nice, hope you can get some good jobs from now on

blackdevil great trophy hunting, and that Europa League trophy surerly boosted your rep

As for my self felt a bit down to play this challenge lately. Have won Serie A with AC Milan, but currently not sure if I should continue or start over to get a fresh start and hopefully some more motivation for this challenge.

@numero - In interviews I've just gone with what they want so far. Got rejected from a number of teams before I was offered a job, I then rejected a couple as I didn't think they were the right fit. The Newcastle job seemed a nice fit but took a while to take to the team.

@TheEarl - The Cup season has done me the world of good rep wise and it probably kept me in the job we've had a Tycoon takeover this season. If I hadn't done much previously I would have thought they'd have sacked me as I'm only now studying for the pro coaching badge.

It is difficult when it becomes a grind to get through a season. Only advice I can give is play what you enjoy. The football my Newcastle team generate now makes it more enjoyable that was when I first joined them...better than watching man utd this season anyway

Slight side note, I applied for jobs got none, I have now seen Tolima Real are mid table team, my solution is to remove the new leagues I added. Holiday til there gone and now holiday til i get a bottom division team - no cherry picking the job, I will be with them for a few years regardless. That first relegation destroyed my rep and winning in Malaysia didn't help. I will be out the job for atleast a year, maybe more til someone takes a shot on me.

EDIT:

My 4th Season

Mini update as I got a job with Cobreloa in Chile with 3 games remaining in the season. Already know which areas of the squad are in a shocking state. I'm off work today so will spend the entire day on this.

Season	Team 	 	Country	    League           Position	Notes          
16/17	Tolima Real	Columbia    Second Division  16th	Sacked with 1 game left to play.
2019    KL Spa          Malaysia    Premier League   6th        FA Cup Finalists, Avoided relegation
2020    KL Spa          Malaysia    Premier League   1st        Champions, QF of Malaysia Cup
2022/3  Cobreloa        Chile       First Division B 11th        11th when I joined (16th closing stages - finished 13th).

Year	Team 	 	Country	    Tournament            Finished	Notes          
2017	U20's    	Columbia    Under 20's World Cup  QF	        Went out in QF on penalties.
2019	U20's    	Columbia    SA Championship       2nd	        Runner's up (WC Round 2)

Alright lads been playing the challenge just not had much time so that's why am only posting now, just before i do my end of season updtate does the Northern Irish County Antrim Shield count as any of the trophies ? I played 4 matches to win it plus was full of all the other big teams. There is League and FA Cup besides this in N.Ireland so just wondering thanks

Alright lads been playing the challenge just not had much time so that's why am only posting now, just before i do my end of season updtate does the Northern Irish County Antrim Shield count as any of the trophies ? I played 4 matches to win it plus was full of all the other big teams. There is League and FA Cup besides this in N.Ireland so just wondering thanks

The criteria is that ALL clubs of the Top Division in the country participate in the cup. If thats the case then the competition counts towards the challenge. So if you are not sure, go back and check if all clubs joined at some stage during the competition.

Alright lads been playing the challenge just not had much time so that's why am only posting now, just before i do my end of season updtate does the Northern Irish County Antrim Shield count as any of the trophies ? I played 4 matches to win it plus was full of all the other big teams. There is League and FA Cup besides this in N.Ireland so just wondering thanks

No it wont count . Portadown for example is in County Armagh and wouldn't be in it

No it wont count . Portadown for example is in County Armagh and wouldn't be in it

So it has to be all clubs as Linfield, Crusaders, Ards, Glentoran, Carrick etc were in it

So it has to be all clubs as Linfield, Crusaders, Ards, Glentoran, Carrick etc were in it

Yes, if just one club from top division doesn't take part , it doesn't count I am afraid. Theres has been given some diversion for Mexico as the country doesn't have a proper cup for all teams. But for N.Ireland when you have both League Cup and FA Cup this can't count I think when there are clubs from top division not taking part.

Sorry for this, but its good for your rep. that you won it.

Yes, if just one club from top division doesn't take part , it doesn't count I am afraid. Theres has been given some diversion for Mexico as the country doesn't have a proper cup for all teams. But for N.Ireland when you have both League Cup and FA Cup this can't count I think when there are clubs from top division not taking part.

Sorry for this, but its good for your rep. that you won it.

Ok no worries just wanted to know whether it counted or not thanks

Goyang Hi FC started off pretty well, keeping up in the top part of the table. However, another wage budget cut came, after who knows how many over the past four seasons, and I just lost my temper. I started applying to better clubs, and not just Korean. After being rejected by Pohang, Ulsan and a few Brazilian and Mexican clubs, I was offered a job by...Seoul!

So, I left Goyang on 3rd place and moved to a club with big money and even bigger expectations. At the time they were still in all competitions, and after a while they upped their expectations even further by asking of me to actually win the league in practically impossible situation.

Table at the moment of job switch

I inherited a squad with some good players, but completely unbalanced. As an illustration, the team consists of 8 wingers and only one left back!

Anyway, I went on not really knowing what to expect. We started a great winning run, but with occasional drop of points which made it impossible to catch up with Jeju who were unstoppable. With half a dozen league games to go, I decided to play reserves, hoping to secure a CL spot and just focus my best XI on trying to win Korean FA Cup and Asian CL.

League table

In the cup, we reached the final only to lose to a side who got relegated. They only had two shots, after a corner and a free-kick, enough for a 2-1 win.

In the Champions League, we beat Perth in the quarters, 2-0 and 0-0. In the semis, we beat Jeju in two VERY tight games, 1-1 and 2-1. The final saw us face Persepolis, with much weaker squad than ours. We saw them out 4-1 and 1-0 to win the first trophy on this journey!

What's more, the board confidence before the CL final was "very insecure" because of the league finish. I think I would've got the sack had I not won.

Season     Team            League               Position       Domestic Cup       Continental Cup         Notes 

2015       Goyang Hi FC    K League Challenge   5th           4th rnd                -                  took over 13 games to go, 7th place
2016       Goyang Hi FC    K League Challenge   1st           5th rnd                -   
2017       Goyang Hi FC    K League Classic     6th           1/4 finals             -    
2018       Goyang Hi FC    K League Classic     7th           4th rnd                -   
2019       Seoul           K League Classic     3rd           runners up           WINNERS              joined after 19 games, 6th place              

Challenge Progress

Club

0/10 top domestic leagues

0/10 domestic cups

1/5 club continental championships (Asia-Seoul)

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments

0/2 world tournaments

My contract with cliftonville has expired so am hoping to move on but i am on a month to month contract, is the only way to leave either by joining another club or to resign ?

My 5th Season

I didnt expect to get out of the group stage of the chile cup initially so to get as close as we did was quite good. Yes we came last in the group but we lost our final game in the last 20min which would have got us through to the next stage.

The league opened and we were on a flyer, clear at the top of the division come the 15th game, then through the playoffs. I've never played a league like that was not sure if the next thing is usual or unusual. The board resets for the "closing stage" but before the first match my squad wanted a meeting as they were unhappy with my management and felt they were not hitting the standards they expected. I'm assuming this was a glitch because for a mid-table at best squad I secured them a promotion playoff in the first half of the season. Regardless after that getting a win was very difficult, not the usual mid-season slump, I switch tactics, spoke to the players, rotated my squad. There was no cure.

Come the close of the season and we get our play-off match, 1-1 in the 90min (came from behind) then a goal in the 2nd half of extra time.

So beyond the play by play of the results this was really quite interesting/confusing. Theres a league rule that says I can only register 7 foreign players, I can only have 5 on the field at a time (something I should of checked before buying players cos i had 4 i couldn't use all season); generally that would be fine but there is a shortage of good locals - the mid-season shift of the league and its the football culmination of tail-of-two-halves. In reality after you win 15games why care about the 15following if you reach promotion playoff? Im assuming thats why our form dropped off completely.

My rep improved to 20% not amazing but its a start on turning things around. Maybe a year in the First Division and a half decent showing will be a good turning point im still desperate to go back to Columbia lol Based on the star rankings the Chilean First Division is 3star and Columbian First Division is 2.5star so maybe they'd take me.

Season	Team 	 	Country	    League           Position	Notes          
16/17	Tolima Real	Columbia    Second Division  16th	Sacked with 1 game left to play.
2019    KL Spa          Malaysia    Premier League   6th        FA Cup Finalists, Avoided relegation
2020    KL Spa          Malaysia    Premier League   1st        Champions, QF of Malaysia Cup
2022/3  Cobreloa        Chile       First Division B 11th       11th when I joined (16th closing stages - finished 13th).
2023/4  Cobreloa        Chile       First Division B 4th        1st in opening stages, promoted via playoffs. MOTY

Year	Team 	 	Country	    Tournament            Finished	Notes          
2017	U20's    	Columbia    Under 20's World Cup  QF	        Went out in QF on penalties.
2019	U20's    	Columbia    SA Championship       2nd	        Runner's up (WC Round 2)

My contract with cliftonville has expired so am hoping to move on but i am on a month to month contract, is the only way to leave either by joining another club or to resign ?

I ended up resigning as the qualifiers for champions league were soon and i wanted to move on. Ill do a update when i have a new job. Will resigning harm my reputation ?

Following last seasons Champions League campaign i decided to stay at FC Porto for another bash at it . The season opened with a SuperTaça 1-0 defeat to Sporting Lisbon though the cards were turned in the Taça da liga final with FCP winning by the same result . The league ebbed and flowed with the big three regularly switching positions via goal difference as there was literally nothing between them . Champions league qualification from the group stages was easy claimed though the wheels nearly came off the cart in the first knockout round . On a wet evening in Seville FCP were beaten 4-2 but were able to claw themselves back in the tie on Portuguese soil and through via away goals.

Manchester City were next in line and were polished off 2-0 on agg though the scoreline doesn't do them justice. FCP were back in the semi finals but came acropper in Madrid as Real progressed. Real went on to win it

Following a 3-1 home win over Benfica, FCP were left with a relatively straight forward game against Rio Ave to claim the title . A convincing 5-1 win sent the Dragões fans into raptures . Tables

And now for the main event . 2030 had been a poor year to be fair for Uruguay as players were given chances to cement a place in the final 23 and with defeats to Spain , and a draws v Serbia and Nigeria there wasn't much belief in the run in to the showdown. Hosts Italy kicked off the tournament in typical slow fashion losing 2-0 to South Korea in Milan . The following day La Celeste sneak it . Where was the free flowing football of years gone by . Had time caught up with the ageing squad , questions were been asked. still not firing . With England and World Champions Brazil confined to watching the remaining games at home on TV , were Uruguay to follow them ?

The unconvincing group winners were drawn against Sweden who had been hammered by Colombia 5-0 in the group stages , the wiley auld Italians scraped through as they usually do and we were down to 16. #doingenough as France, Portugal, Colombia and Argentina flounder. #belief Home nation falls . Down to 4 #nailbitingpenalties 6-5 on pens, Spain claim third place . #lastmanstanding

On a club note i have departed FCP , was fun but we have to move on .. a new challenge exists and take over from Jurgen Klopp at my favourite side in Spain . I declined Barca for it

Season     Team             Country     Position    Notes          
2015    Varbergs BoIS       Sweden        12th      
2016    Varbergs BoIS       Sweden         4th   
2017    Sandnes Ulf         Norway          --
2018    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         2nd      Promoted
2019    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         8th
2020    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         3rd
2021    Sandnes Ulf         Norway         3rd
2022    MK Dons             England       16th
2023    MK Dons             England        8th
2024    Ipswich Town        England        1st      Promoted
2025    Ipswich Town        England        6th
2026    Red Bull Salzburg   Austria        1st      Bundesliga and OFB-Cup Winners
2027    Vitória Guimarães   Portugal       5th
2028    Vitória Guimarães   Portugal       5th
2029    FC Porto            Portugal       1st      Liga NOS and Taça da Liga Winners
2030    FC Porto            Portugal       1st      Liga NOS and Taça da Liga Winners

Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 top domestic leagues - Austria , Portugal

2/10 domestic cups - Austria , Portugal

0/5 club continental championships

0/1 club world championship

International

2/5 continental tournaments - ACON Senegal 2025 - AFC Australia 2027

1/2 world tournaments - WC Uruguay 2030

Yes, if just one club from top division doesn't take part , it doesn't count I am afraid. Theres has been given some diversion for Mexico as the country doesn't have a proper cup for all teams. But for N.Ireland when you have both League Cup and FA Cup this can't count I think when there are clubs from top division not taking part.

.

Also Australia and USA, which have New Zealand and canadian teams in respectively, as per post 3. Maybe there's other countries that have the same thing, but those are the ones we've come across.

shirajzl - Congrats on your Champions League. The korean clubs do seem to have high expectations, so congrats on avoiding the sack. Have you been able to achieve a more balanced squad through transfersnow?

lfc7 - Congrats on your first bit of silverware. It's difficult to know whether to quit or wait for another job. I suspect that quitting can harm your reputation, but maybe not when your contract has expired. However, despite your county cup, you don't have much of a reputation to harm, so it's probably the best idea if you weren't feeling the thing for Cliftonville.

m1987 - I didn't understand what you were saying about the Chilean league; embarrassing because I've lived in Chile. Doesn't it have 2 seasons a year, apertura and clausura? I've always meant to play in the Chilean league on FM, but never got around to it. In my save a vacancy came up at Colo Colo, but I just couldn't stomach the idea because of what they represent politically. The Uni de Chile / Colo Colo match was the craziest I've ever been to as a spectator. In my group were some americans who honestly spent the entire match thining their lives were in danger. Ah, memories.

KWMan - Cool. Saving the best till last. Congrats on the World Cup. You're really close to getting onto the leaderboard, which has lain dormant for absolutely ages.

To be fair im not surprised, I'm not sure I full understand it myself.

There are 3 tables. Opening stage (15games), Closing stage (15games), League (all 30). Top 4 in opening/closing go into separate play-offs. The winner of those goes into a promotion play-off. The champion is the one who finishes 1st in the combined league. I'm desperate to leave and return to columbia, the gulf between second and first division is insane, im getting creamed week in/out lol

shirajzl - Congrats on your Champions League. The korean clubs do seem to have high expectations, so congrats on avoiding the sack. Have you been able to achieve a more balanced squad through transfersnow?

Cheers. I haven't played through the transfer window yet, but I've entered it with "insecure" job status, even though I finished 3rd in FIFA Club World Cup just a recently. I reckon if I don't start winning straight away in the league I'll be in danger.

Shiraz - Similar to yourself, I took over a Korean team (Pohang) and their squad is ridiculously over and under balanced. I'm now in a transfer window and its tricky sorting the squad out with only £5m to spend and the four foreign player rule.

lfc7 - "will it hurt your reputation by resigning".....I don't think it hurts your reputation, but in my experience, every job interview I've gone for, it's been brought up that I've resigned from previous jobs.

Thinking about that last point, it's impossible not to resign from many jobs, given the nature of this challenge!!

Pohang Steelers End of Season 22/23

Review

It states in the above review that we won the league, but we didn't, we finished a "lowly" 6th.

We did win the cup though which was good as that ensured Continental qualification for next season

I took over midway through the season with the club already in the quarter finals of the Asian Champions League where I was pitted against another Korean team, Suwong. I managed to beat them comfortably over two legs and was into the semi finals where I was drawn against......another Korean club, Jeonbuk, who where my old team - a team that gave me the sack.

In my mind I was doing a decent job at Jeonbuk and had signed some good players - this backed up my thoughts when they comfortably despatched me fom the competition and also went on to finish second in the league.

My league campaign petered out to be honest and I lost a little bit of interest towards the end, mainly because the squad (as I'd stated in a previous post) was lacking in many positions and it became impossible to find a tactic / team combination to really do anything. So there's much work ahead in the transfer window to try and establish some sort of balance.

The FA Cup, we were already way into the competition when I took over and a win against Seoul in the semi left me facing Hummels in the final - we were better than them and managed to win the trophy.

However, for the purpose of the challenge I'd already won the cup with Jeonbuk a couple of seasons ago, so this victory doesn't count, but the significant thing was it meant qualification to the Asian Chumps League for next season.

So I'm going to have a crack at the Champions League again and try for the title - If I'm successful, then all well and good, but if not, as soon as things start going wrong, I'm outta here!!

As Vike said, the boards have high expectations in Korea and my chairman can be a bit of a nobhead!!

Season	 Team 	 	Country	     Position	   Notes          
15/16	Linfield      N. Ireland	6th		Took over in December, sacked before the end of the season
16/17	Cliftonville	N. Ieland	3rd		Took over in January, Euro Qualification
17/18	Cliftonville	N. Ireland	4th		League Cup Winners
18/19	Cliftonville	N.Ireland	1st		Champions, Manager Of The Year
19/20	Shanggang	China		1st		Champions, Cup Winners, Manager Of The Year	
20/21	Shanggang	China		N/A		Resigned after being knocked out of Champs League
20/21	Jeonbuk	        S. Korea	4th		Cup Winners, Knocked Out 2nd Round Champs League
21/22	Jeonbuk	        S.Korea		Sacked, 4th in the league, QF of Champions League, SF of FA Cup
22/23	Pohang		S.Korea		6th		Cup Winners, knocked out in SF of Asian Champs League					

Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 top domestic leagues (N. Ireland, China)

3/10 domestic cups (N. Ireland, China, S. Korea)

0/5 club continental championships ()

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments ()

0/2 world tournaments ()

Pug's Update Season 2025/26

Up First In The Confed Cup Was A Group That Involved Brazil/USA and Jordan. With My Team Winning All Three, Cameroon Was Next And A 3-1 Win. The Final Was

Against The Czech And Another 3-1 Win. With The Last Major Trophy With Spain Won I Resigned.

Into The Second Season With Real Only After The Spanish Cup. But With The Team Which I Assembled We Won All. Won The League By 12 Points From Barca.

Also Played Them In The Final With A 4-2 Win. The Champions League Was A Hard Game Against My Old Team Newcastle, And A 4-3 Win. Club World Cup Semi's

Again Played 1 Of My Old Team's Monterrey Winning 4-0, Then The Final Was A 4-1 Win Against Chilean Side Colo Colo.

                                                                       CLUB CAREER                      
                                                                      -----------
Season     Club                Leagues        Cups                                     Other & Notes
                              1st  2nd       1st  2nd    Cont   CWC                                                                        ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2015/16    Cambridge Utd                                                               Promoted To Div 1.Won JPT                     
2016/17    Cambridge Utd                           Won                                 Promoted To Championship.
2017/18    Cambridge Utd                      Won                                      Promoted To Premier League,Won FA Cup
2018/19    Newcastle Utd       Won                                                     Won The Premier League
2019/20    Newcastle Utd       Won                 Won     Won                         Premier league/C1C/Champions League
2020/21    Newcastle Utd                                         Won                   Won Club World Cup
2020/21    Dortmund                           Won                                      Resigned NUFC Took Over Dortmund In 12th
2021/22    Dortmund            Won            Won  Won                                 Won All 3 Trophy's
2022/23    Monterrey                                       Won                         Won N American Champions League
2023/24    Monterrey                                                                   Resigned
2023/24    Marseille           Won            Won  Won                                 Won All 3 Trophy's
2024/25    Real Madrid         Won                 Won           Won                      
2025/26    Real Madrid         Won            Won  Won     Won   Won                   


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                  INTERNATIONAL CAREER
                                                                  --------------------

Season    Nation         Cups                                                                         Other & Notes
                        World Cup    Confed Cup    Euro's    AFC    ACON    Gold Cup   Copa America
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2015      Iran U23                                                                                    Won AFC U23 Championship
2017      France U21                                                                                  Won U21 Championship
2019      England U21
2019      Algeria                                                                                     Never Played A Game
2020      Spain                                                                                       
2021      Spain                                                                                       Won UEFA Nations League
2022      Spain          Won                                                                          Won The World Cup
2023      Spain                                                                                       Won UEFA Nations League
2024      Spain                                     Won                                               Won European Championship
2025      Spain                       Won                                                             Won Confed Cup

   Challenge Progress

Club

4/10 Top Domestic Leagues (England-Germany-France-Spain)
4/10 Domestic Cup (England-Germany-France-Spain)
2/5  Continentals Cups (European-N America)
1/1  Club World Cup (Newcastle)

International

1/5 Continental Tournaments(European Champions-Spain)
2/2 World Tournaments (World Cup-Spain)(Confederations-Spain)

Nice To See New People, Good Luck With Everyone

FC Cape Town 2017/18

Just finished my first full season with FC Cape Town. After a good finish when I took over in the previous season, I was confident of improving the side on the previous year. We were very inconsistent but so was everyone else in the league. After a 2-1 win in the final game of the season, we missed out on a playoff spot on goals scored. Signed a new 1 year contract and will concentrate on improving my defence for the coming season, have a real push at getting up.

                                         Leagues        Cups
Season  Club            NAT  Division   1st      2nd    1st  2nd       Notes and Achievements
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2015/16 Aberystwyth     WAL  Premier     8th             SF   SF       Took over after 14 games in 10th. Won 10 of 18. Resigned end of season.
2016/17 FC Cape Town    RSA  First      13th             2R            Took over after 16 games in 15th. Finished 13th.
2017/18 FC Cape Town    RSA  First       4th             1R            Missed out on playoffs on goals scored.