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radestock

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To allow the game to see your new graphic you'll need to create what's called a 'config.xml' file for most types of graphic (faces/kits/logos). There are some graphics that do not require a config.xml file. These are normally add-on graphics that change aspects of a skin like SITV graphics, player rating stars or 2D pitch items such as Balls, Popups, Nets and Player Icons. These rely on being put in the right place rather than config.xml files. If you are adding these then skip this section.

How to Create a Config File

A config file is an xml document that sits in the same folder as the graphic you want to add. Football Manager reads the config file and is told where the graphics files in the folder should be displayed. Without a config file the game just sees a load of graphics files and doesn't know what to do with them.

There are a few ways to create a config file:

1.Create the file from scratch.

2.Edit an existing config.xml file.

3.Use a program that will create the file for you such as FM Graphics Configurator or fmxml.

1. How to create a config file from scratch.

First thing you need to do is to create a blank file, the easiest way to do this is to open a new file with notepad, (or any other text or webpage editor) when you have opened a new file with notepad paste in the following code. This is just the basic information that every config.xml file needs:

 [i]<record>[/i]
 [i]                <!-- resource manager options -->[/i]

 [i]                <!-- dont preload anything in this folder -->[/i]
 [i]                <boolean id="preload" value="false"/>[/i]

 [i]                <!-- turn off auto mapping -->[/i]
 [i]                <boolean id="amap" value="false"/>[/i]

 [i]                <!-- logo mappings -->[/i]
 [i]                <!-- the following XML maps pictures inside this folder into other positions[/i]
 [i]                                 in the resource system, which allows this folder to be dropped into any[/i]
 [i]                                 place in the graphics folder and still have the game pick up the graphics[/i]
 [i]                                 files from the correct places[/i]
 [i]                -->[/i]

 [i]                <list id="maps">[/i]


 [i]                </list>[/i]
 [i]</record>[/i]

You shouldn’t ever change any of the above code. The bit that you change depending on what you are creating is located between
<list id="maps">
and
</list>
that is currently blank. Each different type of graphic (logo, kit, background logo, face pic) requires a different code to be used. Here we're going to demonstrate the process by displaying the normal logo for Manchester United, the code for this is:

 [i]<record from="680" to="graphics/pictures/club/680/logo"/>[/i]

The 680 refers to the 'unique ID' belonging to Manchester United. Everything has a unique ID in Football Manager, Players, Clubs, Staff, even competitions and leagues. You can find the unique ID for whatever you want either with the game editor or by checking the box called 'show unique IDs' within game preferences. If you do that the unique ID for something will be shown instead of the sub-text (the bit that says a player's positions, or a club's position in the league).

from="680"
is the .png graphics file the game is reading from (so it will look for a file called 680.png). Files can be called anything but it's easier to avoid duplicates and keep things organised by using the unique ID as the file name.
to="graphics/pictures/club/680/logo"
is the location that the graphics file will be mapped to. In this case the line of code tells the game that file 680.png is the normal logo for the club with unique ID 680. This part of the code is the bit that will change depending on what you're adding (logo/kit/face etc).

So a config file just displaying this logo would look like this:

 [i]<record>[/i]
 [i]                <!-- resource manager options -->[/i]

 [i]                <!-- dont preload anything in this folder -->[/i]
 [i]                <boolean id="preload" value="false"/>[/i]

 [i]                <!-- turn off auto mapping -->[/i]
 [i]                <boolean id="amap" value="false"/>[/i]

 [i]                <!-- logo mappings -->[/i]
 [i]                <!-- the following XML maps pictures inside this folder into other positions[/i]
 [i]                                 in the resource system, which allows this folder to be dropped into any[/i]
 [i]                                 place in the graphics folder and still have the game pick up the graphics[/i]
 [i]                                 files from the correct places[/i]
 [i]                -->[/i]

 [i]                <list id="maps">[/i]

 [i]<record from="680" to="graphics/pictures/club/680/logo"/>[/i]

 [i]                </list>[/i]
 [i]</record>[/i]

Now when you have pasted this code into notepad, you can save the file, goto File -> Save As and name the file config.xml – you need to ensure notepad saves the file as config.xml and not config.xml.txt, select 'all files' from the file type drop down box whilst saving.

You have now created a config file, you now need to place this config file in the same folder as your Man Utd logo (in the above example the logo graphic would be called 680). A single config file can contain multiple entries if you have multiple graphics files to add (for example you might have a folder with every EPL badge and a single config.xml file mapping all 20 badges to the game). You can also have as many config.xml files as you want. As long as there is only one config.xml per folder and the graphics the config file refers to are in the same folder, you can separate your graphics up into multiple sub-folders with lots of config files.

Coding Examples

As mentioned above, different types of graphics (kits/logos/faces etc) require slightly different codes to be entered. The different codes are detailed below.

FILE_NAME
– is the name of your graphic, in my example above it was 680 (note the lack of a file extension in the name).

UNIQUE_ID
– is the unique ID of the object, obtainable from the editor or in game.

Club Logos:

Normal Logo

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/
club
/
UNIQUE_ID
/logo"/>

Huge Logo

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/
club
/
UNIQUE_ID
/logo/huge"/>

Small Logo (or Small Flag for the case of countries)

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/
club
/
UNIQUE_ID
/icon"/>

Background Right Logo

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/
club
/
UNIQUE_ID
/logo/background/right"/>

Background Left Logo

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/
club
/
UNIQUE_ID
/logo/background/left"/>

For Nations replace
club
with
nation

For Competitions replace
club
with
comp

For Continents replace
club
with
continent

Also for Nations to replace the large flag (wizard and match screen) you need this code:

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/nation/
UNIQUE_ID/
flag"/>

3D Kits

To change the kits on the 3D match screen you need to add the following to the config file

Home Kit

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/team/
UNIQUE_ID
/kit_textures/home"/>

Away Kit

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/team/
UNIQUE_ID
/kit_textures/away"/>

Third Kt

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/team/
UNIQUE_ID
/kit_textures/third"/>

2D Kits

To display the 2D kits in the club information screen (and in the match screen if the promised fix has been included in patch 1)

Home Kit

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/team/
UNIQUE_ID
/kits/home"/>

Away Kit

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/team/
UNIQUE_ID
/kits/away"/>

Third Kit

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/team/
UNIQUE_ID
/kits/third"/>

Now if after using the above codes for the kits one still doesn’t show you may need to edit the code, as the team may have a special kit they are using for a season, so to enable the kit to show for future seasons you need to add an extra line to the config file, you basically add the year to the end of the line:

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/team/
UNIQUE_ID
/kit_textures/third/2010"/>

If 2010 doesn’t work try 2008 or 2009 etc...

Player Faces

Normal Face

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/person/
UNIQUE_ID
/portrait"/>

Small Face

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/person/
UNIQUE_ID
/icon"/>

In FM2010 the way the editor creates players has changed and in some cases the unique id may change from game to game (especially if you add more than one editor file to your game) fortantley there is an alternative method to get player faces into the game without needing to know their unique id:

Normal Face

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/person/
{FIRSTNAME} {SURNAME} {BIRTHDAY_DD}-{BIRTH_MONTH_MM}
/portrait"/>

Small Face

<record from="
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/person/
{FIRSTNAME} {SURNAME} {BIRTHDAY_DD}-{BIRTH_MONTH_MM}
/icon"/>

So for example if your players name was John Smith and he was born 30th March (year doesn't matter) and the filename of your graphic was johnsmith the line for the normal
face would look like:

<record from="
johnsmith
" to="graphics/pictures/person/
john smith 30-03
/portrait"/>

The above examples all depend on the config.xml file being put into the same folder as the graphic file, now you can have the config file in the parent folder to the graphic(s) (This is how SI do it, but I don’t really like it) and if you are doing that you need to adjust the code to look like this:

<record from="FOLDER/
FILE_NAME
" to="graphics/pictures/person/
UNIQUE_ID
/portrait"/>

In the above example you have the config file and a folder called FOLDER in the same folder, but with the graphic in the folder called FOLDER.

Editing an Existing Config File

This is just a case of copying the file you want to edit to the location you want, then opening the file in notepad and changing either the filename or Unique ID to match your graphic/team.

Using FMxml or FMGraphics Configurator

With programs like these, the best option is to name your graphics by unique ID, put all the graphics of the same type in one folder, load the program select the correct options and then drag the folder of graphics you want a config creating for into the program, and it will create the config file for you.

FMxml Download Link

FMGraphics Configurator Download Link

FMS XML Konfigurator by k750i Download Link

Finally when you are done, load the game to check that the graphics actually show and no error messages occur.

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

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I'm sure SI fixed this in FM08 with the second patch. It created the config file in the skins folder.

Have a look at the thread I were I posted about this bug in the bugs forum and look at Nbrockys reply. he says that there is nothing they can do...

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Depending on what you're wanting to add you need to put your graphics in different locations. By now you will either have a folder or an .fmf file to add. Now you need to find what is called your 'user data folder' or 'UDF'. This is not the name of a folder (you don't have a folder called 'user data'), it just refers to a particular location on your system. This will by default be in different locations depending on your Operating System:

Win Vista/Windows 7: C:\Users\<username>\Documents\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2010\

Win 2000/XP: C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\My Documents\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2010\

Win 98/ME: C:\My Documents\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2010\

Mac OS X: /Users/<username>/Documents/Sports Interactive/Football Manager 2010/

PLEASE DO NOT PUT GRAPHICS INTO ANY OF THE INSTALL LOCATION FOLDERS. IT WILL CAUSE PROBLEMS.

C:\Program Files\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2010 - NO NOT THERE!

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\football manager 2010 - NO NOT THERE EITHER!

/Users/<username>/Applications/Sports Interactive/Football Manager 2010/ - DON'T DO IT MAC USERS!

So for example in Windows 7 after just installing the game your UDF will be the 'Football Manager 2010' folder within C:\Users\<username>\Documents\Sports Interactive\. You can if you wish change the location of your UDF by using game preferences. For example if you have little space remaining on your main drive but plenty on an external drive, you can point your UDF to a folder on the external drive. Simply access game preferences and go to the'display and sound' sub tab. At the bottom of the page you can enter or browse to any folder you want and make it your UDF. Just remember where it is if you change it when installing graphics!

For different types of graphics they need to go in different places within your UDF. Once you've found your graphic type below and placed it where it should go FOLLOW THE LINK AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST. YOU ARE NOT DONE YET!:

SKINS

These need to be added to a folder within the user data folder called 'skins'. The folder may already be there or it may need to be created - do that if you need to. Simply drag your folder or fmf file into the skins folder. The folder will likely be named the same as the skin you're installing. So for example if we were installing a skin called "Super Blue", we might have a folder called "\superblue" or a file called "superblue.fmf". We drag that into our 'skins' folder within our 'user data folder' leaving us with:

...\skins\superblue.fmf

or

...\skins\superblue\

(
note '...' simply means the location of your user data folder e.g. C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\My Documents\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2010\
)

If you are adding a folder a good way to check everything is ok is to open the folder once it's in your skins folder. There should be a .xml file in there named the same as the folder (so for us that would be superblue.xml) along with some other folders (panels, graphics and maybe some others). What you don't want is just another folder called 'superblue' then when you open that you see the xml file. You want just one level of folder, for example:

...\skins\superblue\superblue.xml + other folders (panels, graphics...) -
CORRECT

...\skins\superblue\superblue\superblue.xml + other folders (panels, graphics...) -
WRONG

If yours is wrong, change your folders around so they are correct.

LOGOS

These need to be added to a folder within your user data folder called 'graphics'. The folder may already be there or it may need to be created - do that if you need to. So for example in Windows XP it would be:

C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\My Documents\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2010\graphics\

Simply drag your folder or fmf file into the graphics folder. Logos need to be within the 'graphics' folder but it does not matter exactly where they are placed. You can organise things into sub-folders to keep your logos neat. For instance you could have a 'logos' sub folder within 'graphics'. Within that you might have sub folders for the different coutries, then within those the different leagues, and so on. Graphics you've downloaded are often already in some sort of order too.

One thing to watch out for when organising are files called config.xml. These are vital and should not be mixed and matched. A set of .png graphics will come with a config.xml that is unique to them in the same folder. Make sure they stay together, in the same folder and that new png files or config.xml files are not added or overwritten into their folder.

If your graphics are .fmf format then you can still create sub folders and organise them how you wish.

FACES

These need to be added to a folder within your user data folder called 'graphics'. The folder may already be there or it may need to be created - do that if you need to. So for example in Windows XP it would be:

C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\My Documents\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2010\graphics\

Simply drag your folder from or fmf file into the graphics folder. Faces need to be within the 'graphics' folder but it does not matter exactly where they are placed. You can organise things into sub-folders to keep your faces neat. For instance you could have a 'faces' sub folder within 'graphics'. Within that you might have sub folders for the different coutries, then within those the different leagues, and so on. Graphics you've downloaded are often already in some sort of order too.

One thing to watch out for when organising are files called config.xml. These are vital and should not be mixed and matched. A set of .png graphics will come with a config.xml that is unique to them in the same folder. Make sure they stay together, in the same folder and that new png files or config.xml files are not added or overwritten into their folder.

If your graphics are .fmf format then you can still create sub folders and organise them how you wish.

KITS 2D & 3D

These need to be added to a folder within your user data folder called 'graphics'. The folder may already be there or it may need to be created - do that if you need to. So for example in Windows XP it would be:

C:\Documents and Settings\<username>\My Documents\Sports Interactive\Football Manager 2010\graphics\

Simply drag your folder or fmf file into the graphics folder. Kits need to be within the 'graphics' folder but it does not matter exactly where they are placed. You can organise things into sub-folders to keep your kits neat. For instance you could have a 'kits' sub folder within 'graphics'. Within that you might have sub folders for the different coutries, then within those the different leagues, and so on. Graphics you've downloaded are often already in some sort of order too.

One thing to watch out for when organising are files called config.xml. These are vital and should not be mixed and matched. A set of .png graphics will come with a config.xml that is unique to them in the same folder. Make sure they stay together, in the same folder and that new png files or config.xml files are not added or overwritten into their folder.

If your graphics are .fmf format then you can still create sub folders and organise them how you wish.

BACKGROUNDS

Backgrounds have been disabled with the default FM10 skin. This means team/player specific backgrounds will not work. They should be able to be re-enabled with a 3rd party skin but at present (release day) there are some issues with backgrounds not displaying even with them re-enabled. More information will be posted if a solution arises.

BALLS

You need to include your files in an actual skin rather than just putting them in the user data folder. You can either add them to your favourite downloaded skin or if you use the default skins you can download what are called 'base skins' and add your graphics to them. See this thread for information on downloading the base skins for FM10:

Say you wanted to add balls to a skin called 'superblue'. You would add them into the following folder:

...\skins\superblue\graphics\pitch\balls\

(
note '...' simply means the location of your user data folder
)

You may need to create some of the folders yourself but skins can come with them already.

POPUPS

You need to include your files in an actual skin rather than just putting them in the user data folder. You can either add them to your favourite downloaded skin or if you use the default skins you can download what are called 'base skins' and add your graphics to them. See this thread for information on downloading the base skins for FM10:

Say you wanted to add balls to a skin called 'superblue'. You would add them into the following folder:

...\skins\superblue\graphics\pitch\popup\

(
note '...' simply means the location of your user data folder
)

You may need to create some of the folders yourself but skins can come with them already.

NETS

You need to include your files in an actual skin rather than just putting them in the user data folder. You can either add them to your favourite downloaded skin or if you use the default skins you can download what are called 'base skins' and add your graphics to them. See this thread for information on downloading the base skins for FM10:

Say you wanted to add balls to a skin called 'superblue'. You would add them into the following folder:

...\skins\superblue\graphics\pitch\nets\

(
note '...' simply means the location of your user data folder
)

You may need to create some of the folders yourself but skins can come with them already.

2D PLAYER ICONS

You need to include your files in an actual skin rather than just putting them in the user data folder. You can either add them to your favourite downloaded skin or if you use the default skins you can download what are called 'base skins' and add your graphics to them. See this thread for information on downloading the base skins for FM10:

Say you wanted to add balls to a skin called 'superblue'. You would add them into the following folder:

...\skins\superblue\graphics\pitch\icons\kit\

(
note '...' simply means the location of your user data folder
)

You may need to create some of the folders yourself but skins can come with them already.

3D GRAPHICAL ELEMENTS [WIP]

With FM10 it looks as if many more 3D graphical elements can be edited (at least their textures can be - not the shapes). As information comes to light this guide will be updated to reflect it.

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

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On a related note, my managers pic has now dissapeared after loading the other skin ? I am back on default skin but no pic ? I have skin cashe off and a config.xml in the graphics folder saying not to overwrite the managers pic, but it is gone . Any ideas ?

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To be honest nbrocky said exactly what I would have done in his situation.

Without a knowledge of skins you would assume it was something internal to the 3rd party skin causing the problem. SI can't support the work of others - that's what he was getting at.

Even so he said to PM someone who knew more about it (Ter).

I do not agree completly with you radestock. It's a matter of customer care. It's of course something that he possible couldn't know was something about the game it self, but after last years release he should have. Anyway the way he responded isn't how you show customers that they are taken seriously. He should have replied with something like this: "Unfortunately SI don't support 3rd party skins, but I report the problem to the graphics people so they can find out if the problem is with the game release." A respond in that way would have been customer care.

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You're going to need some extra software installed to be able to 'extract' the file you've downloaded. Choose one of the two below depending on your Operating System:

Windows XP/2000/Vista/Windows 7: 7-Zip (Choose the most recent .exe)

MacOS X: The Unarchiver

7-Zip is installed using the .exe you download, following the instructions on-screen. To install The Unarchiver simply double click on the .zip file you download from their website then drag the program it extracts (called 'The Unarchiver') into your apps folder.

Once installed, create a new folder somewhere you can keep track of (on your desktop for instance) and place your downloaded graphics zip, rar or 7z in it. Now we extract:

Windows: Right click on your zip, rar or 7z. Choose 7-Zip from the menu, then select 'Extract Here'.

MacOS X: Right click (or ctrl + click) on your zip, rar or 7z. Choose 'open with' then select 'The Unarchiver'.

Your file should extract and most probably create a folder in the same directory, or perhaps a .fmf file.

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

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  • 4 weeks later...

A .exe file is a PC program. This is probably an installer that will try and add your download to the correct place for you with minimum fuss. Follow the instructions as if you were installing a regular PC program.

The only thing you need to do is make sure that the installer is installing to a location that matches your 'user data folder' as shown in game preferences. If you have never changed this location in FM 2010's preferences then the installer will most likely already be pointing to the correct place.

As the file is a .exe it's probably a good idea to run a virus check on it before you double click it, just in case it's not what you think it is. PC .exe files will not run on an Apple Mac, Apple users should check for an OSX compatible version of the download.

Once the installer is finished, load FM 2010 (or close it and then reload). Enter game preferences and then under the 'display & sound' tab uncheck the box that says 'use skin cache' and check the box that says 'always reload on confirm'. Press confirm. Your graphics or skin should be up and running!

Thankyou for using the Installation Helper

Return to the start

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Those are two different types of config.xml file.

BocaJ - It shouldn't be any different on a Mac. Just make sure it's in the right place (documents area skin folder, not the install location skins folder), that it's saved as xml type and called config.xml. So we'd have:

/Users/<username>/Documents/Sports Interactive/Football Manager 2009/skins/config.xml

I doubled checked and the config.xml file's location and I have it the in documents skins folder. I tried creating the .xml file from both TextEdit and Word. Each one had no effect. Still all white text. Could upload your .xml file to a host server for me to download and try? thanks for your help.

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Finishing Up

Now we've installed the graphics we need to get the game to load them up properly, a vital step. Launch Football Manager 2010. When loaded go straight into game preferences from the intro screen. Click on 'Display and Sound' from the sub-tab menu. Make sure that you
tick
the check box on the page called 'Always Reload Skin on Confirm' and
un-tick
then box saying 'Use Skin Cache'. Now press confirm. There should be a box that pops up saying 'loading image data for the new skin'. Once this is done your graphics should be working within the game. You may want to quit the game and reload it - just to be sure.

To select a skin you've added choose it from the drop down menu in 'preferences>display and sound' and press confirm. Other graphics do not need choosing to enable them. You do not need to start a new save game for graphics to work.

Once you're sure your graphics have worked go into preferences again and change the tick boxes back to how they were if you wish (doing so will speed up the game load times).

That's it!!!

Finally...

Feel free to link to this guide but don't take it and pass it off as your own work. I hope you found it useful

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Those are two different types of config.xml file.

Ones that maps images like kits, faces and badges to the game are somewhere in your /graphics/ folder. This one goes in your /skins/ folder. They are unrelated, don't delete one because you add this one or try and combine them or anything like that.

BocaJ - It shouldn't be any different on a Mac. Just make sure it's in the right place (documents area skin folder, not the install location skins folder), that it's saved as xml type and called config.xml. So we'd have:

/Users/<username>/Documents/Sports Interactive/Football Manager 2009/skins/config.xml

Sure. http://files.filefront.com/configxml/;12671230;/fileinfo.html

That's the file you need. Put it in:

/Users/<username>/Documents/Sports Interactive/Football Manager 2009/skins/

Another thought I just had. Are you unticking 'use skin cache' and reloading the skin (easiest way is to tick 'always reload on confirm' then click confirm)? You need to do that just as when you install a skin.

Using your file did the trick. I guess not every xml file is the same. Many thanks!!!

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  • 3 weeks later...

I am still having some problems with this, do I place this config file in "my documents" or "My computer". I have the Sports Interactive files in both them but am not sure where I place the config.xml file. Could anyone please help?

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Try reinstalling it. If that doesn't work then fully uninstall it and delete the remaining sports interactive folders in your documents, program files and the application data. Just don't make the same mistake I did which was to forget to remove the saved games from the sports interactive folder in my documents :(.

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  • 2 months later...

Hi

I posted in the tumma skin thread and found i had the problems that this thread mentioned but i have a config file and that has not changed the colour of the text, and i even downloaded Radestocks Config File to no avail.

Is there anything else i could do?

Many Thanks

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Most of your graphics will still be compatible with Football Manager 2010. The big exception is skins. Skins are version specific; A skin from FM09 will not work on FM10 and vice versa.

Another issue is backgrounds. There are problems with the game currently (10.1) that cause issues with screen specific backgrounds. Hopefully this will be fixed in patch 2.

Everything else should still work fine, follow this guide for where to put things

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 months later...

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