FM16 Big Euro Challenge

FM16 BIG EURO CHALLENGE

aka The Leftovers Small Club to Big Club Challenge

Now heading into its eighth year, the Big Euro Challenge has been a wonderful source of incredible stories, beloved clubs, and legendary players, mainly thanks to the great participants over the years. Particular shout outs to former custodians JoseRR, Iacovone, and LLR (who is handing over the reins this year), and all the regulars who have made this challenge what it is.

Similar to the venerable Dafuge and Gundo Small Club to Big Club Challenges, the goal is to start with a previously unplayable club in the "big" European league of your choice and take them all the way to top division and Champions League glory. From fallen giants to obscure nobodies, there is a huge variety of clubs to choose from on your road to European victory.

As you can probably see, I'll be adding considerably to the opening post(s) but in the name of giving everybody the opportunity to get up and running, wanted to get the thread posted!

1. Quick Start Guide

2. In-Depth Guide

3. Available Clubs and League Guide

4. Thread History

5. Save Games and Resources

Quick Start Guide

Click here for in-depth guide

Available Nations (reset dates unconfirmed for FM16):

France (June 19th)

Germany (June 19th)

Italy (June 29th)

Netherlands (April 29th - no promotion/relegation so take over lowest placed team after final game of season)

Portugal (June 29th)

Russia (June 19th)

Spain (July 9th)

Turkey (June 19th)

Please note: Leagues are subject to change post-beta when we can check the latest league reputations and potentially swap out some leagues with the Gundo Challenge.

Reset dates are currently unconfirmed - if anybody could confirm reset dates as they start up their saves, that would be much appreciated. I'll be setting up some pre-made saves so will be able to confirm them all myself, but getting the info even sooner would be great.

GAME SETUP

i. Choose your nation from the above list, and load only that nation, making sure to include all the available divisions. You can choose whatever database size you prefer, and add players to the database up to a limit of 100,000 in total (such as adding Player from Top Clubs in Europe etc.)

ii. No edited databases are allowed besides the file correcting club/competition names. Attribute masking should be enabled and the in-game editor should be disabled - should look like this.

iii. Add an unemployed manager and holiday until the reset date for your chosen nation - saving the day before will give you the opportunity to reload for a greater variety of teams.

iv. Add a new manager with the lowest past experience and coaching licenses possible (generally Sunday League and None respectively).

v. Choose to take over any club promoted to the lowest playable league in your nation (easiest way to find this is on the Season Review screen - found by visiting the page for your nation and choosing Season Summary from the Overview drop down).

vi. Retire your unemployed manager.

vii. Start on the road to continental glory.

RULES

i. You must be able to scout a player to be able to sign them (though you don't actually have to scout them), or alternatively bring them in on trial first. You can sign anyone brought to you by Agent offers or your Director of Football - grab a screenshot of the offer/DoF signing them.

ii. Player naming and discussion of tactics is allowed.

iii. If you are sacked, you can a) restart from the beginning, b) continue in your current nation and pick a new club that meets the original criteria at the end of the season, or c) add another Big Euro League, remove your original league, holiday a season, and start afresh in that new league.

iv. No restrictions on affiliate clubs.

v. International management is allowed, but you cannot start as an international manager.

vi. The use of any external utilities or editors is prohibited, as is the use of the in-game unlockables.

UPDATES

Part of the fun of joining a challenge like this is to share it with all the other players going through the same ordeal you are. We want to go through the ups and downs with you, and offer encouragement or commiseration as appropriate.

We do expect at a minimum that you will post an opening post, introducing us to your attempt on the challenge, and including the Manager Information screen and Club Domestic League History, so we can let you know if there might be any problems with your attempt before you get too far into it (accidentally picking an ineligible club, etc.)

At the end of every season, we want to at least see the final League Table, your Squad, and your Transfers screen.

THE LLR MEMORIAL MOTIVATIONAL

Copied with very minor changes from LLR's FM15 thread:

Finally I would like to wish everyone taking on this challenge the best of luck on a long and hard journey to managerial success!

The atmosphere and contribution in this thread has always been excellent, long may it continue. Myself and the core members of the challenge are here to help for the new challengers and hope everybody that participates contributes considerably to the thread. There is nothing better than getting immersed not only in your own game but providing the encouragement to other people's attempts too. Remember we are all fighting the same battle - to defeat the AI (and uncover fabulous newgens!) - therefore it goes without saying that any form of cheating will be severely chastised. Don't do it! We have had an incident in the past, lets not see it again - it spoils the challenge for the hard workers in here.

Best of luck everyone!

In-Depth Guide

Coming soon!

Available Clubs and League Guide

As soon as the full version comes out with the proper SI database editor, I will be able to get hold of updated details on all the eligible teams. In the meantime, the eligible teams from FM15 are copied below, as gathered by LLR - some of these clubs may no longer be eligible, but at least there is a chance you can get a sense of the reputation of your new club.

[TABLE]

[TR]

[TD]France[/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]CFA - A[/TD]

[TD]CFA - B[/TD]

[TD]CFA - C[/TD]

[TD]CFA - D[/TD]

[TD]CFA - Others[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 5][/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

[TABLE]

[TR]

[TD]Italy[/TD]

[TD]Serie D[/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 5][/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 5][/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

[TABLE]

[TR]

[TD]​Netherlands[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Juliper League[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD][/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD][/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

[TABLE]

[TR]

[TD]Spain[/TD]

[TD]Tercera División[/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 6][/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 6][/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 6][/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 6]*Except the B & C clubs in these divisions

[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

[TABLE]

[TR]

[TD]Turkey

[/TD]

[TD]3. League[/TD]

[TD][/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD]Group 1[/TD]

[TD]Group 2[/TD]

[TD]Group 3[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 3][/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

Thread History

Coming soon!

Saved Games and Resources

SAVED GAMES

I'm currently in the process of holidaying through a save in each of the eligible nations - just the relevant league loaded with a large database, and saving on the day before reset - and will post them all here as I finish them up. I will also provide updated versions post-beta. If you can't be dealing with all that database customization or boring holidaying, then these files will be all you need to get up and running in the nation of your choice!

France - Coming soon

Germany - Coming soon

Italy - Coming soon

Netherlands - Coming soon

Portugal - Coming soon

Russia - Coming soon

Spain - Coming soon

Turkey - Coming soon

LOGOS

It's always fun to have real logos for the clubs in your game. Which style you use is a matter of personal preference - I tend to go for the standard logos so everything in the game matches, but the other logos are all very popular as well. Also, while I'm certainly no graphic designer, I have been known to whip up a quick logo for clubs that don't have one - including this logo for my beloved Oriental de La Paz in Uruguay (I used a unicorn because I thought I had as much chance of seeing one of those as of winning the Copa Libertadores). If you're in need of a logo, let me know - no promises, but I'll see what I can do.

Standard Logos

Metallic Logos

ESS Logos

Shiny Logos

KITS

Below is the link to the main page at Sortitoutsi.net for kits, with a couple of different kit styles (SS Kits tend to be most popular). Not all of the kits relevant to this challenge will likely be updated for the 2015/16 season - especially for the unplayable regional leagues which our teams will be promoted from - but I'll post links to relevant kit packs as I find them.

Sortitoutsi Kits Page

FACE PACKS

Face packs can certainly add a lot of flavor to your game, with pictures for some of those obscure (or not so obscure) players you end up signing throughout your career. Personally, my favourite part of the game is when I've gotten far enough in that a majority of players are regens with computer generated faces, so I tend not to bother with face packs (especially since the file is so large). But it can definitely add some interest to the earlier seasons.

Cut Out Player Faces (matches default style of faces in game)

Reserved - just in case!

I will definitely take part in this challenge.

Iseemonsters1 do you need a banner for the first post? I made the one that is in the FM15 Big Euro Challenge thread, and could update it for FM16.

I will definitely take part in this challenge.

Iseemonsters1 do you need a banner for the first post? I made the one that is in the FM15 Big Euro Challenge thread, and could update it for FM16.

If you have the time, that would be amazing!

Looking forward to seeing where you end up this year!

Well, time to get this show on the road! In between getting some pre-made saved games up and running, I've picked my club for the challenge this year - the mighty Caniçal of the Portuguese league, found on the Eastern edge of the far flung island of Madeira. Looks nice. I know we've had challenge completions from the Azores before, but I don't think I've ever seen one from Madeira.

Here's my manager profile and information, as well as a bit of info on the club - Competition History, General Information, and Facilities (might have to do something about that artificial pitch).

good to see this challenge again for FM16.... i have had time off from the game due to ill health and a long stay in hospital but i am apparently getting the new game and i will likely be back here in my favourite challenge. good luck to everyone doing this challenge!

Good luck in Portugal iseemonsters1.

Sorry to hear about the health problems rlipscombe. Maybe FM will be of help in raising your spirit.

I have decided to give this challenge a go - however, forgot to take the screenshots on day 1 (hope thats okay).

I have chosen to go to Germany and have taken over the reigns of FC Viktoria Köln

http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m52/supermas_2006/FC%20Viktoria%20Koumlln%201904_%20%20General_zpsm1l2qhl1.png

My Manager Profile should hopefully show all the right stuff.

http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m52/supermas_2006/Home_%20My%20Profile%20Information_zpsi1oihpxr.png

As you can see from the Competition History,the club is somewhat lacking and success - so it is time to bring the glory to Die Viktorianer!

http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m52/supermas_2006/FC%20Viktoria%20Koumlln%201904_%20History%20Competitions_zpsuoluggqv.png

The current facilities are not the best, but then again neither are the finances so that won't be changing for some time! Our current average attendances are around the 2000 mark, which ranks 17th of the 20 teams in 3 Liga - with only the second teams of the big clubs getting worse.

http://i101.photobucket.com/albums/m52/supermas_2006/FC%20Viktoria%20Koumlln%201904_%20%20Facilities_zpss7li9dlf.png

When I took over the side, we were very light on staff, so I have had to hire my own coaching team and new assistant manager plus physios and scouts. However, in terms of players, there were quite a few decent players in the side. In fact, my new assistant ranked many of them as "Good for most 3 Liga sides". We were a little shy of a full 11 of good players however so I did make a few signings, including 3 loan deals.

Looking forward to the challenge and good luck everyone else who takes part - looking forward to the updates.

Hi all! Probably won't be posting in here as I simply don't have the time anymore BUT good luck to everyone and well done iseemonsters for setting this up and keeping it going . Good luck all

rlipscombe - sorry to hear about the health issues. Looking forward to seeing where you end up this year, and best wishes!

Supermas2 - good luck in Germany! FC Viktoria Köln is a familiar name to me - I think maybe someone must have attempted this challenge with them in the past. An average attendance of 2,000 sounds pretty great - my average so far this season is 387 and my stadium only holds 1,000! Does having 2,000 per week through the gates help the finances at all? Or do running costs offset that?

iacovone - sorry we won't be seeing you around too much this year! Hopefully you'll still stop by and see us - the thread just wouldn't be the same without you in it at all.

is parma in italy a team that i can choose?

is parma in italy a team that i can choose?

Haven't double checked the database since the full version only came out yesterday, but I'm pretty sure they would be! They're definitely a Serie D side IRL so unplayable at the moment, and they have a chance of getting promoted to Serie C if you holiday for a season.

Well, time to get this show on the road! In between getting some pre-made saved games up and running, I've picked my club for the challenge this year - the mighty Caniçal of the Portuguese league, found on the Eastern edge of the far flung island of Madeira. Looks nice. I know we've had challenge completions from the Azores before, but I don't think I've ever seen one from Madeira.

Here's my manager profile and information, as well as a bit of info on the club - Competition History, General Information, and Facilities (might have to do something about that artificial pitch).

Ha, I need to follow this. Good luck with Caniçal!

Ha, I need to follow this. Good luck with Caniçal!

Haha great! You can be my realism police.

Currently I'm having trouble getting staff and players to sign on part time contracts unless they are rejects from the island's other clubs - I'm guessing it's a long way to move for a part time job. Still having a decent time in the league though.

Nice to see someone taking this over. Thanks Iseemonsters​ I will probably be around to read the thread and add comments, but just don;t seem to have time for FM as much anymore Maybwe i need to get my daughter into it so I can play with her ;P

If you have the time, that would be amazing!

Looking forward to seeing where you end up this year!

Here is the top picture, and I hope it isn't entirely underwhelming - I only changed the FM15 text to FM16... Use it if you want.

Here is the top picture, and I hope it isn't entirely underwhelming - I only changed the FM15 text to FM16... Use it if you want.

Awesome, thank you! I've added to the opening post.

The terribly translated Spanish ends here, I promise. Let the journey begin![/center]

I used the "traductor de Internet más populares" to figure out what this said and I liked what I saw! Nice work!

Best of luck in Spain. Looks like you might be a bit light on players, but 1,200 season ticket holders at €110 per ticket is a decent chunk of cash coming in I would think. Not sure what wages look like in the Spanish third tier.

Nice to see someone taking this over. Thanks Iseemonsters​ I will probably be around to read the thread and add comments, but just don;t seem to have time for FM as much anymore Maybwe i need to get my daughter into it so I can play with her ;P

I am also in a similar boat... she is 16 months old now and into everything!

As for my hospital stay I was diagnosed with cysts on my brain at the end of June so was in hospital and then rehab for almost 3 months... hopefully I will get back into the game and the challenge this year while I recuperate...

Really enjoyed the challenge last year, will be giving it a go this year aswell!

Why has the thread slowed down so much this year? Going to start this in France, but I love reading all the updates.

Usually the other two challenges don't have more posts than this one.

Just completed Defuges challenge and will now try this one just setting up the game now will post screenshot shortly

Maybe a little easier but i have decided to get Parma back up to where they belong looking forward to this challenge my first attempt. Usually just play my Defuges save all year but felt like a change! Heres my profile

Germany reset date is June 19

Ok, lets try to get the ball rolling.

In the FM15 challenge I managed Viktoria Berlin, a small team from a big city. I did not complete the challenge, and the other downside to that save was that despite the seeming potential for large crowds flocking to see the club play, it was impossible to build a large stadium in the short term. The original small stadium could only be expanded a little bit, and therefore the club built a new stadium very early in the game. With maxed out capacity of somewhere around 20000, the new stadium was not what I would like to see from a successfull team based in Berlin.

This time I will go for another small team from a big city, and I have checked that there is enough room to expand the stadium by a reasonable amount. Hopefully this means that the possible new stadium will have a sufficiently large capacity with a good dose of modern amenities. I did use the pre-game editor to change the club colours to something that is easier for my eyes, but apart from that and some media and name change files there are no data modifications.

Club Esportiu Europa

Club Esportiu Europa, based in the northern Gràcia district of Barcelona, was founded in 1907 following a merger between Madrid de Barcelona and Provençal. By the 1920s it had emerged as one the strongest clubs in the country, and second only to FC Barcelona within Catalonia. In 1929 Europa was one of the founding members of La Liga, but dark clouds were gathering above the club. In 1931, after an ill-fated merger with another team from Barcelona, the club got into serious financial troubles and withdrew from all competitions in the middle of the season. After that C.E. Europa has mostly been playing in the lower leagues, though it had a brief stint in the Segunda División in the late 1950s and 60s.

Europa were crowned as champions of Catalonia after defeating FC Barcelona 1–0 in a title play-off.

In the game C.E. Europa is the only semi-professional club in Segunda División B Grupo 3, so attracting players good enough to fight for promotion is going to be challenging. Additionally the club has poor training facilities and poor youth facilities. With room for 7000 spectators the club's stadium Nou Sardenya is not very large, but it isn't miniscule either. The prediction is that Europa, or "Los Escapulats", will finish dead last with 5000-1 chance of winning the division.

C.E. Europa has a fierce rivalry with another small Barcelona based club U.E. Sant Andreu, but who cares about them when the real target is to beat FC Barcelona!

Nou Sardenya was built in 1995 on top of an underground car park.

[TABLE=align: center, width: 100%]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5, align: center]

Club Esportiu Europa

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5]

Campaign - Season One - 16/17

Fixtures | Competitions

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=width: 30][/TD]

<!--Season XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-->

[TD]

Segunda División B Grupo 3 - 12th (Predicted 20th)

The season was reasonably good for semi-professional club's first attempt at this level after promotion. The mission was to avoid automatic relegation, and that was achieved. Tactic familiarity was very slow to rise, and individual errors in defence and attack cost many vital points. Still I'm happy that the season finished with my club 6 poinst clear from the relegation play-offs. Towards the end of the season with better tactic familiarity and new players, the quality of football played at Nou Sardenya began to improve. That is very encouraging, and while I don't think the team is ready to fight for promotion, I'm expecting Europa to finish higher next season.

Copa del Rey - 1st Round

Only one game in Copa del Rey. Europa played away against Gimnàstic Tarragona, and there was little chance of winning the match. 0 - 2 for Nàstic.

Copa RFEF - 1st Round

I expected that success in this lesser cup could have been better than in Copa del Rey, but Europa lost both legs of the 1st round encounter against Ebro.

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5]Team

Transfers | Squad[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=width: 30][/TD]

<!--Team XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-->

[TD]

Alberto Maciá - GK

In the begining of the season I signed Manolo to be my 1st choice keeper, but later I noticed that Maciá was willing to negotiate with Euoropa, so I brought him in. Definitely good enough for Segunda B.

Imanol Eslava - DR

Another player who became interested in joining Los Escapulats after being unattached for several months. One of the best players at the club.

Álex García - DC

Similarly to the two above players Álex García joined Europa later in the season. A no-nonses type of central defender who has decent defensive skills, but as otherwise pretty low attributes. His defensive achilles heel is his tackling, which I'm trying to improve through training.

Miguel Domínguez - MC

Leading Europa midfielder.

Raul Valero - ST

Valero was at the club before I arrived, and has so far survived in the team. Not especially skillful striker, but scored 14 league goals.

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5]Club

Facilities | Finances[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=width: 30][/TD]

<!--Club XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-->

[TD]

Being semi-professional, Europa does not budget huge amounts of money to wages or transfers. That has pretty much guaranteed that the club will not run big deficits and remains financially healthy.

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

<!--Progress XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-->

[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5]Progress

[TABLE=class: none, align: center, width: 1050]

[TR]

[TR]

[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6, width: 50, align: center]Season[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #ebebeb, width: 50, align: center]Level[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #ebebeb, width: 50, align: center]Media[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #ebebeb, width: 112, align: center]League[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6, width: 112, align: center]Copa del Rey[/TD]]

[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6, width: 112, align: center]Champions League[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6, width: 112, align: center]Europa League[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6]Achievements[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

<!-- Season -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]16/17[/TD]

<!-- League -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]3[/TD]

<!-- Media-->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]20th[/TD]

<!-- Position -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]12th[/TD]

<!-- Copa del Rey -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]1st Rnd[/TD]

<!-- Champions Cup-->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]-[/TD]

<!-- Euro Cup -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]-[/TD]

<!-- Achievements -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa]-[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

[TABLE=align: center, width: 100%]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5, align: center]

Club Esportiu Europa

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5]

Campaign - Season Two - 17/18

Fixtures | Competitions

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=width: 30][/TD]

<!--Season XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-->

[TD]

Segunda División B Grupo 3 - 6th (Predicted 11th)

During the latter part of the previous season my team played much better football than in the beginning of that campaign, and when 17/18 kicked off the players continued where they had left off. Europa was nowhere near relegation, but did not really challenge for promotion either. The most positive thing was the arrival of young strikers Cifuentes and Pedrosa, who were pretty good this season and carried the team, and who hopefully can improve next season.

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5]Team

Transfers | Squad[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=width: 30][/TD]

<!--Team XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-->

[TD]

Joan Campins - DR

Former Barcelona B player Campins is a strong contender to be the first chouce right back.

Nesto Salinas - AMC

When healthy, Salinas was always on the pitch.

Dani Pedrosa - ST

Young striker Pedrosa scored 13 league goals.

Iván Cifuentes - ST

Cifuentes also scored 13 league goals and seems to be the more talented one of the two young attackers.

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5]Club

Facilities | Finances[/TD]

[/TR]

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[TD=width: 30][/TD]

<!--Club XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-->

[TD]

I requested the board for an affiliate that could share training facilities with Europa, and they came up with a deal with Atlética Gramenet. The facilites went from poor to average overnight. I cannot complain about that, except that I think that Europa will have to go back to poor facilities (ie. cancel the affiliation) before the training facilities can be improved beyond average.

[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

<!--Progress XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-->

[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5]Progress

[TABLE=class: none, align: center, width: 1050]

[TR]

[TR]

[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6, width: 50, align: center]Season[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #ebebeb, width: 50, align: center]Level[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #ebebeb, width: 50, align: center]Media[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #ebebeb, width: 112, align: center]League[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6, width: 112, align: center]Copa del Rey[/TD]]

[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6, width: 112, align: center]Champions League[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6, width: 112, align: center]Europa League[/TD]

[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6]Achievements[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

<!-- Season -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]17/18[/TD]

<!-- League -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]3[/TD]

<!-- Media-->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]11th[/TD]

<!-- Position -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]6th[/TD]

<!-- Copa del Rey -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]-[/TD]

<!-- Champions Cup-->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]-[/TD]

<!-- Euro Cup -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]-[/TD]

<!-- Achievements -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa]-[/TD]

[/TR]

[TR]

<!-- Season -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]16/17[/TD]

<!-- League -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]3[/TD]

<!-- Media-->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]20th[/TD]

<!-- Position -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]12th[/TD]

<!-- Copa del Rey -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]1st Rnd[/TD]

<!-- Champions Cup-->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]-[/TD]

<!-- Euro Cup -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa, align: center]-[/TD]

<!-- Achievements -->

[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa]-[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

[/TD]

[/TR]

[/TABLE]

[TABLE=align: center, width: 100%]

[TR]

[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5, align: center]

Club Esportiu Europa

[/TD]

[/TR]

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Campaign - Season Three - 18/19

Fixtures | Competitions

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Segunda División B Grupo 3 - 1st (Predicted 5th)

Someting definitely "clicked" in the squad as the quality of football played by Los Escapulats was very good through the whole season. In a few games my team simply dominated the opposition, and that is something that didn't really happen in the two previous seasons. First place with a thirteen point gap to the next team Sabadell cannot but please me. Promotion was guaranteed after a great 8 - 2 aggregate victory over Cádiz in the promotion playoff semi finals, and the the playoff finals against Zaragoza ended to a 4 - 3 aggragate win in front of a full crowd at Nou Sardenya after an excellent comback from being 1 - 3 down after the first leg in Zaragoza.

Copa del Rey - 4th Round

1st round match against La Roda was very tightly contested, but penalties favoured Europa. In the 2nd round Segunda B2 Zaragoza could not match Los Escapulats in Barcelona, and Europa got bye to the 4th round. Liga BBVA Getafe had to fight hard to gain a 4 - 3 aggragate win over Europa to advance to the 5th round.

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[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5]Team

Transfers | Squad[/TD]

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Lucas Gafarot - DL

Former Cornellá and Barcelona B left back finally got a proper chance at first team football, and ended his season with a 7.63 league average.

Gonzalo Silva - DCLR

Young Uruguayan loand defeder is equally adept at DC, DL and DR positions.

Alberto Carbonell - DCR

Determined central defender.

Nestor Salinas - AMC

Amazing season by Salinas. Europa top goalscorer with 21 league goals as an attacking midfielder.

Joseba Azpilicueta - ST

Young Basque striker made his La Liga debut with Athletic last seson, but for this campaign he came on loan to Europa. 17 league goals is not bad for 16 year old. Future Liga BBVA player.

Iván Cifuentes - ST

17 league goals by Cifuentes.

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[TD=colspan: 2, bgcolor: #e9eff5]Club

Facilities | Finances[/TD]

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The board decided that it was time for the club to turn professional. Europa's stadium, Nou Sardenya, is also being remodelled to fulfill Liga Adelante requirements.

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[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6, width: 50, align: center]Season[/TD]

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[TD=bgcolor: #d6d6d6]Achievements[/TD]

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[TD=bgcolor: #fafafa]2^a B3 Champions, 2^a B Champions, Promotion[/TD]

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Nice progress so far Duccio.

I'm back for this challenge. Been rubbish the past few years with starting it but never getting beyond the first season or so.

Going as FC Carl Zeiss Jena. Chosen only because they formed in 1903, the year as the club I support, Aberdeen.

Screenshots:

History

Club Info

Manager Info

Got through pre-season. Only just got together something resembling a team. Happy with it though, finances weren't too restrictive. Picked up a new affiliate in Leverkusen who have given me some midfielders on loan to buff out the team. Gonna be a long season I reckon!

Good luck with Jena minisav.

Nice to see more people in this thread.

It took me 4 league matches but finally got my first win! An 87th minute 30 yard screamer gives a 2-1 over local rivals Dresden! Their manager is Jens Lehmann but he mad man was no match for my mind games.

I am now looking into the possibility of purchasing FM16, and was wondering what people's thoughts on it now that it has been out a while were

I am in. I am not sure if Turkey or Spain, but will see

I was doing this as a Youth only challenge but considering the issues surrounding intakes on Touch mode I have decided to do it on this challenge instead.

Jura Sud - 2016/17 - National

Me - Club -

League - We started off really well and looked like we may have a bit of a chance of going up. It didnt last as we found things tougher in the middle and the end of the year but all in all I am pleased. We never had any real scares of going down but the league was very tight so we could have really finished anywhere.

Competitions - We had some fun in the cup we beat a team from a League above in ESTAC Troyes before loosing to Metz

Transfers - Montoya came in before I did. I didnt use him and he has now retired. Trimmed the squad down a little bit one huge transfer fee came in for a player I didnt want to sell but he was unhappy and was soon out of contract.

Finance - Not ideal

Stars

Amadou Coulibaly - Solid defender great player and I have managed to keep him for longer at the club which is vital

Maxime Partouche - Cracking little player the real creative spark in the team

Naccer Bennemera -The player in the middle who keeps things ticking over and does add extra defensive cover

Youth

Intake - The ones not on holiday are this years intake, except one not ideal

Etienne Jeanne - Decent player not in a position of need, but good to have. We may use him for some games next year

Next Year

I think just much of the same really. I would like to move up a place if possible but a repeat of this season would be more than welcome.

Season       Team          League     Position     French Cup       Coupe de la Ligue       Europe           Notes and Achievements

2016/17     Jura Sud      National        13th      10th Rnd                      N/A       N/A                Survived

Jura Sud - 2017/18- National

League - Again no where near the bottom or relegation zone all year long but also nowhere near the top of the league. We finished on less points than last year but higher up the league. We were a little less consistent than I would like but I am really seeing some good stuff coming from this squad.

Competitions - Enjoyable little cup run, battering lower league sides before getting beat by a Ligue Un team

Transfers - Lost some depth and a star from last year but good money was made

Finance - Decent

Stars

Mourad Benharima - Wing backs are important and this guy was a star

Romain Barbet - Played a big role following the outgoings and filled the spot really well

Naccer Bennemera -Another quality season from one of the leaders

Next Year

Another small improvement would be good. I am going to spend some money in the off season so new players should help us.

Season       Team          League     Position     French Cup       Coupe de la Ligue       Europe           Notes and Achievements

2016/17     Jura Sud      National        13th      10th Rnd                      N/A       N/A                Survived
2017/18     Jura Sud      National        10th      9th Rnd                       N/A       N/A

Hello everyone! After so far failing to get into any save on the new game, I'm returning to my spiritual home - the Big Euro Thread!

Sad to see we've lost a few of the old-timers, and that the thread seems a little quiet, but glad to see iseemonsters1 taking over the old thread and doing an excellent job on it.

Anyway, it's half-term for me, and that means I have some time to kill, and a chance to get into the game without having to mark anything!

Currently holidaying in Turkey as it's a nation I've not attempted in the past. Hoping to takeover an Istanbul-based minnow since it's my favourite city in the world.

A real shame to see this great challenge struggling this season... personally I haven't got the time to fully commit yet due to personal circumstances but I hope to get a save going at some point this year

Dafuge doesn't seem as popular this year either. Sure we've got a lot of folk doing it, but I'm sure in previous years we had a lot more...

I'd be interested in starting this. However I now play FMT on the iPad this would stop me from loading players based in nation and stuff like that does that make me ineligible or can I post here anyway?

You don't need to load extra players to do the challenge.

so i have struggled to find a game that i can settle into so i am dabbling with a save in my spiritual home. progress will be slow for now and i have only just created the game so not in a position to post yet. fingers crossed i click and can stick at this save.........

Wow looks super good. I'm going to try this out XD

S.C. Beira-Mar, currently in my first season in Portugal trying to return Beira-Mar to the top flight.

Will update once I've completed the first season

Lets see if we can get this challenge going again! Going to Germany again, my usual goto place for this challenge. Will post the introduction very soon.

Kickers Offenbach

Challenge Start Introduction

Offenbacher Kickers, also known as Kickers Offenbach, is a German association football club in Offenbach am Main, Hesse. The club was founded on 27 May 1901 in the Rheinischer Hof restaurant by footballers who had left established local clubs. From 1921 to 1925 they were united with VfB 1900 Offenbach as VfR Kickers Offenbach until resuming their status as a separate side, Offenbacher FC Kickers. Since 2012, Kickers Offenbach's stadium has been the Sparda Bank Hessen Stadium.

After last season's promotion to the German Third Division they hired unknown manager Andy Sava to help guide them to success. Although they don't have much success in their history, the club has high hopes for this new era.