The Ultimate Football Manager Challenge

JamLUFC · December 19, 2023

Season Four - Vissel Kobe / Ivory Coast

This was a tough season to get through!

We started in the last 16 of the Asian Champions League, and my new signing and main striker Joel Piroe does his hamstring in the first leg to be out for over two months. We lost the first leg 2-1 away to Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors and couldn't break them down in the home leg which sent us out of that early. We hadn't qualified for next seasons either which meant we'd have to wait two years if we want another chance at this.

Injuries kept coming, and new signing Yosuke Ideguchi broke his leg early on so was out for the season - our two biggest transfers in pre seasons out for a significant amount of time. We went on a winning run then lost in the last 16 of the J League Cup. We caught up with the league leaders, and with six games to go we sat one point ahead of Kyoto Sanga with it in our own hands. Despite winning 5 of our last 6 and drawing the other, we came up short in the title race as they won their last six games to pip us to the title. Very frustrating way to end the season, however we still had the Emperors Cup final to look forward to.

My plan was to leave at the end of my contract on December 31st given our Champions League run won't start until August and I want to get out of Japan, however the Emperors Cup final didn't take place until 1st January so I had to sign a new contract! My plan is still to resign after the cup final but I couldn't risk not getting that game. The final saw us play Jubilo Iwata, and despite finishing 41 points higher than them and being the better team we lost 2-1. I started the season convinced I'd tick at least one trophy off maybe two, so to get so close and get nothing is very disheartening.

At the start of the season in February I also applied for a few international jobs, and surprisingly got offered roles with Ghana and Ivory Coast. The Ivorians had a slightly better team so I went with them to try and get the following years AFCON ticked off the list. I'm also hoping that getting a big African job would give me better chance of getting one of the top South African jobs when these come available.

We had the 2026 World Cup which I had no hopes for (so never did an update as I went through) as I was drew with Colombia, Italy and Saudi Arabia. After a narrow loss to Italy we bounced back with wins over Colombia and the Saudis to put us through in second place and give us a draw against Türkiye, who we beat 1-0. In the third round we were up against England. I expected England to hammer us, but we actually held out until the 115th minute before conceding and narrowly losing 1-0. I even managed to get our three best penalty takers on the pitch so was confident in a shootout, but it wasn't to be. England went on to beat Portugal, Nigeria and Germany to go on and win the World Cup.

In the AFCON qualifiers we were drawn against Kenya, Gambia and Gabon which we've qualified for already from after just four games so have booked our place at the AFCON.

SkiIIs · December 20, 2023

Season 2036/37 - Manchester Utd

My second stint in England, but my first with Manchester Utd. They finished 8th the year before and expectations were only to finish in mid table. Cant understand how bad this giant has fallen if that is all they expect. Truth be told, the team was very solid and probably just as good if not better than the Inter team that just conquered Europe.

We couldnt have started the league any worse and by round 6 we found ourselves in the relegation zone with no wins and only 2 points. The only positive i could think of at this point was that out of the 6 games, we did play Newcastle, Chelsea, Arsenal and Tottenham so it was always going to be a tough start. Our next 7 games we won 3 and drew 2, so again not lighting the league on fire but definitely on the improve. From that point tho, we never looked back! We won the next 12 games and then only drop points in 3 more matches past that to make a magnificent comeback and finish in 2nd spot. This sort of form gives me confident that we can contend for the title next year if we can get off to a good start!

In the EFL Cup we lost in the first game against Liverpool away so wasnt too concerned about that. In the FA Cup tho, we had better luck on the draw having played Kidderminster, Blackpool and Bristol Rovers in the Third to Fifth rounds. In the Quarter Final we came up against our formidable neighbours in Man City at their ground. In a game where they dominated possession, they couldnt really create anything and we hit them on a counter and deservedly took the lead in the 54th minute thanks to an own goal. The managed to equalise with their only shot on target 15 minutes later but we would progress through thanks to super sub Hojlund's goal with 2 minutes left in normal time. We then got West Ham in the semis who we comfortable brushed aside then beat Everton in the final 3 - 1.

We also won the Conference League for good measure as well which lifted me into the world HOF.

Edited December 20, 2023 by SkiIIs

SkiIIs · December 20, 2023

Season 2037/38 - Manchester United

We certainly continued the end of last seasons form into the new season winning our first nine games and 12 of the first 13 games with a draw to Leicester the only blemish. That helped build a little buffer which soon went away after only getting 1 point out of the next 9 available. We then went the next 15 games undefeated to build up that buffer again which helped us win the title. We dropped a few points towards the end making it look closer than it was as we were still competing in the Champions League. A first league title since 2012/13.

For good measure, we made the Champions League final but fell to RB Leipzig in penalties which would have been the cherry on top for my stay here in Manchester.

I will move on after the world cup but right now there are no good options available.

2038 World Cup

The goal was to make the third round but we were given a really difficult group. Our friendly before the comp started was against Polan and we lost 3 - 1 which was our first lost in over 30 competitive games. We lost to Italy in our first group game 2 - 0, then lost to Denmark 1 - 0. A 5 - 0 demolition against Suriname got us one of the best 3rd positions to qualify for the second round. In the second round we got Poland but this time we beat them 2 - 0 to make the 3rd round. We then beat Ivory Coast 4 - 0 to make the quarter where we were knocked out 2 - 1 against South Korea (my former employers).

Edited December 20, 2023 by SkiIIs

AndreV1313 · December 20, 2023

SEASON 2026/2027

It took a few years longer than expected, but finally the championship is added to my palmares. In terms of titles, we win less than last year, but we reach the bottom of all competitions, enriching the team's palmares, as well as our own, with an exceptional trophy.

DSTV PREMIERSHIP

In the league, as mentioned, the season is extraordinary. We only managed one defeat, after the championship had already been won, and finished the competition with 69 points from 30 games, an astonishing haul. The gap on the second place, the city rivals the Sundowns, is 12 points. In this classification, it is surprising that the defending champions, the Orlando Pirates, finished seventh, exonerating their coach during the season. Little else to say, our season in the league hardly ever sees us in trouble, also thanks to a new acquisition in attack, Kibu Denis.

MTN 8

Get used to it already because this willbe just the first of several finals lost. The competition goes a bit as usual: fairly easy team at the start, in this case the Amazulu, beaten 2-1, then in the semifinals the Orlando Pirates. This time, however, we finally managed to get past them, overcoming the 2-1 first leg in favour of our opponents with a 2-0 comeback.
The dream, if you want to call it that, was shattered in the final, with the Kaizer Chiefs winning 2-1 in a comeback.

CAF CONFEDERATION CUP

A very similar path to last year, which saw us win the title. Zero difficulties in the preliminary rounds against Guelish Batal and KCB, while some more difficulties came in the group, which we finished second behind CS Sfax.
In the quarter-finals we easily overcame Kaizer Chiefs in the South African derby, but we were eliminated in the semi-finals by Future, a team we had beaten in last year's final, who went through thanks to away goals.

TELKOM KNOCKOUT CUP

The scenario is the same as in the previous competition. In the first round a team at the door, albeit a dangerous one, Stellenbosch, is easily overcome thanks to a 3-1 win signed by Donn, Adebayor and Moralo. In the quarter-finals life was even easier with a clear 3-0 win against Swallows FC. In the semi-finals we won the Pretoria derby against Sundowns 1-0.
Here too we then fell in the final, defeated by the surprising Chippa UTD, who beat us 1-0.

NEDBANK CUP

The last of the disappointments comes in the Nedbank Cup. Once again at the beginning the path is clear: 1-0 victory in the first round against Kaizer Chiefs, then 3-0 victory against Marumo Gallants, 2-1 victory in the quarter-finals against Amazulu. In the final the win was even bigger, with a resounding 5-1 victory over Polokwane City. It all looked easy and we got suckered, being tripped by Cape Town City, who won 1-0 and took the trophy.

Season     Team             Position  Notes and Achievements
2023/24    Black Leopards   1st       Motsepe Foundation Championship winner, promotion to DStv Premiership
2024/25   Supersport United 4th       Nedbank Cup winner
2025/26   Supersport United 4th       Telkom Knockout Cup, Nedbank Cup and CAF Confederation Cup winner 
2026/27   Supersport United 1st       DStv Premiership winner

Challenge Progress

Club

1/10 top domestic leagues (DStv Premiership)

1/10 domestic cups (Nedbank Cup)

0/5 club continental championships ()

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments ()

0/1 world tournaments ()

SkiIIs · December 20, 2023

Season 2039 - Asian Cup

My second attempt at the Asian Cup after losing in the final four years ago with South Korea. I showed my loyalty after rejecting several offers from larger countries post the World Cup including Italy, Brazil and Argentina.

We were given a friendly group consisting of Saudi Arabia, Kyrgystan and Lebanon which led to three wins and topping the group. Second round we face Oman which shouldnt be a challenge on paper.

Second Round

Spoiler

A straightforward 3 - 0 win where we I could sub off key players early. No real surprises in other results. Another easy opponent in Syria next

QF (if applicable)

Spoiler

A really hard fought 1 - 0 win. Much to my frustration we couldnt get that second goal to give us some breathing space. The draw has opened up on our side as UAE knocked out holders Iran out on penalties. South Korea loom as the threat in the final if we make it.

SF (if applicable)

Spoiler

A red card to our opponents in the 6th minute all but handed a finals berth to us, winning 4 - 1 in a game where again i could sub my key players off early. South Korea in the final

Final (if applicable)

Spoiler

As expected a really tough game marred by some tough tackling. I thought it was doom and gloom after they equalised at the death, but we managed to steady and get the goal we needed in extra time!

Edited December 20, 2023 by SkiIIs

SkiIIs · December 21, 2023

Went the full year unemployed in club land as nothing really popped up at all which was strange. After the season, this popped up and I took it with both hands!

leyrtj · December 21, 2023

Reflections on this challenge

It's been a couple of days and I've reflected on this challenge. It's amazing how a computer game can affect your life, but this challenge lived with me for a few months of my life. It's all-consuming in the pursuit of trophies and goals. I started the challenge back in April originally as a pure Pentagon challenge, then I came across this thread and realized it had to be this challenge instead. In the first month, I did the first 9 seasons, completing Asia and South America. Then I went away and tried (and failed) the Youth Academy challenge. Then I came back over the summer and finished all but one of the 32 trophies (the World Cup). After ten years of trying to win that one cup, and losing in the final twice, I'd had enough. Part of the challenge of this challenge is the grind. It's so many trophies to win, and losing in another cup final means you know you have another season at that club. That can be difficult on the mind. Then this week, I thought I'll have one more go at completing the challenge. I gave myself two more World Cups to finish it, but luckily won the first one. A big relief.

This is by far the best save I've ever had on FM/CM. Some of the memories it creates, the highs and lows, some of the places in the "world" it takes you. I really enjoyed the Youth Academy challenge but this one is my favourite - and a big thank you to vikeologist for organizing it. I'm not quite sure which save to do next. Part of me wants to say I'm never doing this challenge again, and another part of me is tempted to start another go at it right now.

Hardest and Easiest country to manage in

I found Brazil the hardest country to manage in and this country took me the longest to win the league. My reputation wasn't quite high enough for one of the big teams, so I took over Vasco de Gama. Every team has Brazilian wonderkids, and you don't have hundreds of millions to buy all of them, so it took me a while to assemble the squad on the cheap. That, and also the large number of games you play. Fun league though. China was tough as well, until I realized I should spend the money on Chinese players rather than foreign players.

In terms of easy, none of the leages were easy as such. I've always found England one of the harder leagues to manage in because of the competition, but it was relatively straight-forward this time. South Africa also, as none of the domestic players cost that much money.

Best Season

Undoubtedly, the 18 months spent at Chelsea. I left Vasco de Game and took over a struggling Chelsea team. In the first 6 months we won the Europa League, enabling us to qualify for the UCL. Then in the next season, we won the UEFA Super Cup, Carabao Cup, Premier League, Champions League and World Club Cup. The Club cup was especially satisfying as I'd never won this competition this version of the game. There's something about the timing of the competition which makes it a challenge.

Worst Season

Probably the second season at Cruz Azul. Lost in the Clausura Final and the CONCACAF Champions League final to the same team two weeks apart.

Times of wanted to give up

Numerous. As mentioned above, 9 seasons into the save, but this was more of a break that a quit. Losing in the 2035 Asian Cup final to Australia was really tough. I was already behind in trophies in the International side compared to the club side because it took me ages to win the African CON, and then it took ages to get the South Korea job. Losing the final meant I had to wait another 4 years to have a chance, and I couldn't leave the job to go elsewhere as it took me so long to get the job.

Later on, I'd won the 10 domestic leagues, but still had to win 4 more cups, so I had to move around countries to win those. This was a bit of a grind. Then finally, as mentioned above, losing the second World Cup final.

Favourite players

So many, but I'll keep it to 3.

Firstly, Santiago Soto, a striker from Colombia. He first joined me at Vasco de Gama for 27.5m, and scored a goal a game across two season. I struggled to win without him. Then when I moved to Chelsea he joined me there for 45m, and continued to score a goal a game. Unfortunately, I never managed him again. When I moved to other club, Chelsea refused to sell him. Went on to win numerous Ballon d'Ors. Still, he's probably my favourite player in all of FM.

Secondly, another striker, Pablo Sanchez. Joined me at Cruz Azul when I poached him from division rivals Monterray. I used every trick in the book to afford his transfer but I knew he was the key. Then when I joined Dortmund he followed me there and became at legend there. I forgot to take his careeer stats screenshot but he scored 272 goals in 388 games at Dortmund.

Lastly, Hossam Samir, a right winger, who I managed at 4 different clubs. He first joined me at Junior in Colombia, then followed me to Vasco de Gama. When I moved to Chelsea I tried to sign him, but strangely he chose Spurs on a much lower salary. I then signed him at Real, and even managed him for the Egypt National team.

How I would approach the challenge if I do it again

I'd definitely take it slower and enjoy the journey more. I was too single-minded in winnning. I might add some characteristics to the manager to make it more realistic.
I would also change the order I do the countries. I got a bit stuck at time because of reputation. For example, I moved from Asia to South America, meaning I couldn't get one of the big jobs in Brazil. Perhaps moving to Mexico first would have been a good stepping stone. Mexico jobs did come up but not ones I wanted, so perhaps I could be less choosey. The order I'd probably choose would be Africa, Asia, North America, South America, Europe.
I finished the 10 leagues but still had 4 cups left to go. There were times when I'd win the league with a team, but not the cup, then I would move clubs as I was bored. But moving clubs meant to you had to build the team again to win the cup, so it might have ended up taking more time. For the other league titles you have to win, I would prioritize leagues with 2 cups, such as Scotland, Northern Ireland and Portugal.
I'm not sure how I would do this, but I would try to speed up the international trophies (in fact I'm not sure you can choose to do this). I thought that North America and Asia would be the hardest internationally, as I rarely see Mexico, Australia, South Korea jobs coming up.

Edited December 21, 2023 by leyrtj

vikeologist · December 21, 2023

@leyrtj Congrats on completing the challenge. I was so obsessed with making sure I updated the HoF I forgot to congratulate you before.

It certainly can be a mentally tough task to complete. A few years back i got to within 2 international trophies, but couldn't get them because I ran out of viable Asian nations to manage, and also I was quite depressed at the number of finals i lost.

Then just a month or so ago i had the same problem, albeit with the WC and Euros.

You said about speeding up the international trophies, and whether you can choose to do this. I did holiday between international matches, so it only took an hour or two to get to the next one. (I was almost playing a tournament a day at the end) It is allowed, but the disadvantage is that you miss players asking you whether they should continue to play for you and lose them to other nations.

Every time i start the challenge I think I'm going to complete it really quickly. Maybe not beat the record, because you'd have to pretty much win every international tournament first time, but quicker than I ever do. Instead I thought I was going to set the record for the longest to complete, and probably go to the 22nd century and be over 100.

I'm quite ruthless with picking up the outstanding domestic cups, spending as little time as possible in the last few nations. It's pretty much unavoidable to need extra cups. Mexico used to be an easy place to pick up a cup because some of the top teams didn't play in it (but it was still allowed as it was the only cup in Mexico) but now there is no cup at all.

The order of continents you suggest is the most popular / obvious order. However, completing Europe first also makes a lot of sense. It might actually be the quickest route, largely because you can pick up top international jobs / trophies quicker.

corinthiano · December 21, 2023

2025 Season Review

I was picky on the jobs I applied for considering we made some good signings and were in the Champions League, but got rejected for the Kashiwa Reysol and Kaizer Chiefs jobs. This meant staying with Kumamoto for another season, where we made a decent start and threatened to mount a challenge for the title, but fixture pile up with us getting relatively far in the cups and a serious injury to Christy Manzinga which put him out for 3 months derailed our campaign and we fell short in all the cup and finished the leageu just outside the Champions League qualification places.

In the Champions League we had an easy group with Beijing, a team from Bangladesh and one from North Korea. We qualified as one of the best second placed teams but were dismantled twice by Beijing which makes me believe we have little chance to win the tournament. I am going to cast my net a little wider and currently have applications at Yokohama F-Marinos and Ulsan in South Korea, lets see if they bear any fruit.

Star Player - Christy Manzinga again - amazingly he was top scorer of the J1 League despite only playing in 21 games and we missed him a lot when he was out injured.

Africa Cup of Nations

We were terrible in the World Cup Qualifiers, finishing third behind Morocco and Congo, and I did not have high hopes at all for this tournament.

Group Stage

We started against hosts Morocco who had beaten us comfortably in the WQ qualifiers and it didnt go very differently here as we lost 4-2. We then easily beat The Gambia to leave us just needing a draw against Guinea-Bissau to secure second place in the Group. We were on course for that until the 85th minute when we conceded two goals to drop down to third and put qualification to the knockouts at risk. Luckily we were one if the best 3rd placed teams and just about scraped through to the Last 16.

Knockouts

Finishing third meant we played Nigeria instead of Equatorial Guinea and I thought this would be our last game, but we produced the performance of my tenure to knockout the favorites convincingly! This set up a Quarter-Final against Uganda who had also shocked Egypt and we went through them relatively comfortably despite the narrow score.

In the Semi-Final we faced DR Congo, not a power house but 40 places above us in the FIFA Rankings. They scored in the 82 nd minute and I thought that was it but Musonda scored in the 93rd minute to take the game into extra time. We just about managed to scrape through to penalties but won those for a very surprise appearance in the Final!

Ivory Coast were our opponents in a repeat of the 2012 final, which Zambia one. It was hover not meant to be in a thrilling final where Ivory Coast pegged us back three times before scoring a winner 5 minutes from the end of the game. A shame not to have won the tournament but it was unlikely to happen so I am just happy for the experience. After the tournament a number of roles popped up and I joined the team we knocked out and whom I think we have a really good shot at winning the next Africa Cup of Nations.

Progress

Club

Nation

Challenge Summary

Edited December 28, 2023 by corinthiano

_JHTB_ · December 21, 2023

Palmeiras

Brazilian Serie A - 2028

After my success in the Asian Champions League I turned my head to the Brazilian league as one of the pre-season league favourites in Palmeiras were struggling, but, were still involved in continental competition. I did think that we had a strong enough team that we would be able to compete for the Copa Libertadores, but did think that we should be able to make good headway in the league and challenge the upper echelons.

The league portion of my hope didn’t particularly go to plan. We were generally performing well enough there but we weren’t converting it to victories even succumbing to a 3 match losing streak part way through the season. Generally, it seemed that in the league if it was ever a tight game we would tend to come out on the losing side even if the stats suggested we perhaps edged the tie. Ultimately, we were improving on the 12^th place that the team were in when I took over, but we ended up further away from the top of the league to when I took over which was a disappointment.

The Copa Libertadores on the other hand was going quite well. By the time I took over it was already the knockouts so I did not have to worry about the league phase and had a tie against Atletico Brown of Argentina in what was a pretty straightforward tie. Next up we would face Santos which was another of the teams I had applied to after winning the Asian Champions League so there was some internal bragging rights as well as them being actual Rivals to Palmeiras. We were comfortably better over the two legs and I would say our 3-1 aggregate victory probably flattered them more than us.

The Semi-Final saw us up against River Plate and in terms of chances the two legs were direct opposites of one another. We were much the stronger team in our home leg and they were much the stronger team in the away leg. However, we, against the run of play, in the away leg managed to win on the night 4-1 which alongside our home leg victory set up a Final tie against another fierce rival in Corinthians.

The final saw us score two early goals which really eased any nerves that we may have had, that was until early in the second half our midfielder played an inch perfect through ball for their attacker to beat the keeper and slot home. Thankfully we quickly responded before adding another late on to secure my second continental trophy in 6 months.

Key Player:

Progress

I do think we can probably win the league next season with the correct additions, but I’m a little loathed to stay a season just for a league title, especially in a league with as many games as Brazil. I will stay should their not be any jobs that are particularly appealing, but I suspect I will be leaving before too long.

corinthiano · December 21, 2023

So Yokohama F-Marinos decided not to hire me, going with the manager of Fukuoka instead, who finished in mid table last season...first game of the season is away to them in the Champions League Last 16...think I made my point clear

Gammonds · December 22, 2023

Season 29/30 – SuperSport United

SuperSport’s summer transfer window was every bit the adventure I expected it to be. To start things off, I let a handful of senior players go on free transfers. (Oddly, some of those don’t show up on my transfer history – looks like only the ones who had a contract agreed before they actually left). Those were my planned departures, hadn’t played much, and were mostly taking up minutes I could hand to youngsters off the bench. Between July and September I lost 4 starters (2 of my front 4) in the transfer market, none of whom I wanted to unload. I was a bit fortunate to hold on to 3 others under a fair bit of pressure and am a bit surprised no one made a run at my striker. The first 2 outbounds weren’t a surprise and had direct replacements from my transfer list. The rest of the player sales would have to be filled by some development from within my youth ranks.

We opened the season strong – so strong we were perfect through the end of October. At that point we’d won the Super 8 and breezed through the initial stages of the Champions League while only playing 5 domestic league matches due to our scheduling logjam. In November we lost to Orlando Pirates in the SA KO Cup quarters – mildly disappointing to the board, but an ultimately irrelevant competition to us this year.

At the start of the January transfer window, we were leading our CL group and nominally 6^th domestically – but unbeaten and with 5 games in hand to close a 6-point gap. It was a pretty comfortable position, but with the concern that we’d have the busiest schedule of any of our competitors through the spring while also losing some key starters to the CHAN from mid-January to early February. The transfer window itself was pleasantly quiet. I brought in a new right back from Cape Town City who should be the last piece of a dominant defense long after I’m out of this job. Outside of that, I only had to fend off half-hearted attempts at some of my depth options and prospects, no overseas teams made a run at any of my best players.

Ok, by some key starters out at CHAN, I mean 6 of my first 11 and a squad player. We were also scheduled twice a week, all domestic league matches, through the second week of February. My players out at CHAN would make it back just in time for the resumption of the Champions League group stage if South Africa went all the way. The schedule wasn’t any less intense from that point forward – the resumption of Champions League play and the SA Cup kept us playing twice a week through the first week of March.

That run was a challenge for my players’ fitness and my ability to rotate them, but by mid-February it was obvious we would win the league barring a catastrophic collapse. No such collapse was in the offing, and we mathematically secured the title in early April while we had 6 league matches left to play – our closest opponent was down to 2.

Spoiler

We won our Champions League group with minimal fuss and were drawn against AmaZulu in the quarters. They are a traditionally good side and had finished a very credible 2^nd domestically last year. This year they were a decidedly mediocre mid-table team, and the 5-0 aggregate result reflected that. In the semis things were a bit sportier as we faced last year’s runners up, ES Tunis. We won both legs, but not comfortably as the scoreline flattered us a bit away, and at home we put in arguably our worst defensive performance of the year. The final saw us face defending champions ES Sahel. Opening away, we were a bit unlucky in a goalless draw. A week later at home we scored 3 goals in the first 30 minutes in route to a 4-0 victory where our opponents had 0 shots on target.

Spoiler

I generally won’t spend much time talking about individual players in my end of season reports, but I there’s one I find particularly noteworthy from my time in South Africa. Vuyo Mazibuko is a homegrown player who had just broken into the first team when I took over SuperSport. This is him at the end of the most recent season:

Spoiler

Middling heading stats or not, his physicality had made him quite the threat in the air when there’s a decent crosser opposite him. He’s also technically and physically just very good for South Africa, and probably more than good enough for a much better league. He’s been interested in moving to Europe for the past 18 months, and I’ve been luck to hold him this long. That $2.4 million asking price is his suggestion from the previous summer window when West Ham lowballed an offer pretty badly and wouldn’t match the $1.2 million a Belgian team he wasn’t interested was offering. Wanting to leave or not, he was my leading scorer across all competitions this year, joint-4^th for assists, and probably the single most important reason we were so successful this year. Depending on where I land next, I may just try to bring him along. The team's scoring and his individual stats:

Spoiler

The end of season competition results:

Spoiler

The Super 8 win was a nice bonus early on and we retained the league and FA Cup, the league in a rather dominant fashion. The African Champion’s League win was the important thing for me and completes the challenge requirements at the club level in Africa. I tried to double dip and get the Ivory Coast job mid-season but was not successful. I’m waiting a few days or weeks to resign to see what jobs open up and if I have any better luck job hopping while employed this time. I’m also weeks at most away from finishing my Continental A license and think that might be a good thing to have before applying for more jobs. There’s a World Cup this summer, which I also expect to open up some good international opportunities. Club wise I have no strong preference for where I go but am not leaning toward heading to Europe quite yet.

Challenge Progress: 3/32

Spoiler

Edited December 22, 2023 by Gammonds
Fixing unintended extra image

Gregg88 · December 23, 2023

There's only one way i can start this update.........TOYS WELL AND TRULY OUT OF THE PRAM.

This is how the league goes....every year. No matter what upgrades i make, Ferencvaros make better ones. The owners won't allow me to go on coaching courses becaue they need me at training. I can't win :lol:

And this is how this current season is going......

If you look at the below closely....you'll see the very game where I snapped. Lol!

I've started applying for so many jobs. I want out of Hungary. ASAP.

JamLUFC · December 24, 2023

On 21/12/2023 at 09:00, leyrtj said:

Reflections on this challenge

It's been a couple of days and I've reflected on this challenge. It's amazing how a computer game can affect your life, but this challenge lived with me for a few months of my life. It's all-consuming in the pursuit of trophies and goals. I started the challenge back in April originally as a pure Pentagon challenge, then I came across this thread and realized it had to be this challenge instead. In the first month, I did the first 9 seasons, completing Asia and South America. Then I went away and tried (and failed) the Youth Academy challenge. Then I came back over the summer and finished all but one of the 32 trophies (the World Cup). After ten years of trying to win that one cup, and losing in the final twice, I'd had enough. Part of the challenge of this challenge is the grind. It's so many trophies to win, and losing in another cup final means you know you have another season at that club. That can be difficult on the mind. Then this week, I thought I'll have one more go at completing the challenge. I gave myself two more World Cups to finish it, but luckily won the first one. A big relief.

This is by far the best save I've ever had on FM/CM. Some of the memories it creates, the highs and lows, some of the places in the "world" it takes you. I really enjoyed the Youth Academy challenge but this one is my favourite - and a big thank you to vikeologist for organizing it. I'm not quite sure which save to do next. Part of me wants to say I'm never doing this challenge again, and another part of me is tempted to start another go at it right now.

Hardest and Easiest country to manage in

I found Brazil the hardest country to manage in and this country took me the longest to win the league. My reputation wasn't quite high enough for one of the big teams, so I took over Vasco de Gama. Every team has Brazilian wonderkids, and you don't have hundreds of millions to buy all of them, so it took me a while to assemble the squad on the cheap. That, and also the large number of games you play. Fun league though. China was tough as well, until I realized I should spend the money on Chinese players rather than foreign players.

In terms of easy, none of the leages were easy as such. I've always found England one of the harder leagues to manage in because of the competition, but it was relatively straight-forward this time. South Africa also, as none of the domestic players cost that much money.

Best Season

Undoubtedly, the 18 months spent at Chelsea. I left Vasco de Game and took over a struggling Chelsea team. In the first 6 months we won the Europa League, enabling us to qualify for the UCL. Then in the next season, we won the UEFA Super Cup, Carabao Cup, Premier League, Champions League and World Club Cup. The Club cup was especially satisfying as I'd never won this competition this version of the game. There's something about the timing of the competition which makes it a challenge.

Worst Season

Probably the second season at Cruz Azul. Lost in the Clausura Final and the CONCACAF Champions League final to the same team two weeks apart.

Times of wanted to give up

Numerous. As mentioned above, 9 seasons into the save, but this was more of a break that a quit. Losing in the 2035 Asian Cup final to Australia was really tough. I was already behind in trophies in the International side compared to the club side because it took me ages to win the African CON, and then it took ages to get the South Korea job. Losing the final meant I had to wait another 4 years to have a chance, and I couldn't leave the job to go elsewhere as it took me so long to get the job.

Later on, I'd won the 10 domestic leagues, but still had to win 4 more cups, so I had to move around countries to win those. This was a bit of a grind. Then finally, as mentioned above, losing the second World Cup final.

Favourite players

So many, but I'll keep it to 3.

Firstly, Santiago Soto, a striker from Colombia. He first joined me at Vasco de Gama for 27.5m, and scored a goal a game across two season. I struggled to win without him. Then when I moved to Chelsea he joined me there for 45m, and continued to score a goal a game. Unfortunately, I never managed him again. When I moved to other club, Chelsea refused to sell him. Went on to win numerous Ballon d'Ors. Still, he's probably my favourite player in all of FM.

Secondly, another striker, Pablo Sanchez. Joined me at Cruz Azul when I poached him from division rivals Monterray. I used every trick in the book to afford his transfer but I knew he was the key. Then when I joined Dortmund he followed me there and became at legend there. I forgot to take his careeer stats screenshot but he scored 272 goals in 388 games at Dortmund.

Lastly, Hossam Samir, a right winger, who I managed at 4 different clubs. He first joined me at Junior in Colombia, then followed me to Vasco de Gama. When I moved to Chelsea I tried to sign him, but strangely he chose Spurs on a much lower salary. I then signed him at Real, and even managed him for the Egypt National team.

How I would approach the challenge if I do it again

I'd definitely take it slower and enjoy the journey more. I was too single-minded in winnning. I might add some characteristics to the manager to make it more realistic.

I would also change the order I do the countries. I got a bit stuck at time because of reputation. For example, I moved from Asia to South America, meaning I couldn't get one of the big jobs in Brazil. Perhaps moving to Mexico first would have been a good stepping stone. Mexico jobs did come up but not ones I wanted, so perhaps I could be less choosey. The order I'd probably choose would be Africa, Asia, North America, South America, Europe.

I finished the 10 leagues but still had 4 cups left to go. There were times when I'd win the league with a team, but not the cup, then I would move clubs as I was bored. But moving clubs meant to you had to build the team again to win the cup, so it might have ended up taking more time. For the other league titles you have to win, I would prioritize leagues with 2 cups, such as Scotland, Northern Ireland and Portugal.

I'm not sure how I would do this, but I would try to speed up the international trophies (in fact I'm not sure you can choose to do this). I thought that North America and Asia would be the hardest internationally, as I rarely see Mexico, Australia, South Korea jobs coming up.

Out of curiousity, how did you manage your run time speed? I'm only in 2027 and have noticed the game has significantly slowed down for me - will this continue to get worse throughout? At the minute the only leagues I've got as playable are Japan, South Korea, South Africa, USA, Brazil, Argentina and England top divisions, with Germany, Spain, Italy and France as view only. Is this too many? Would you recommend only having on the league I'm in?

vikeologist · December 24, 2023

2 hours ago, JamLUFC said:

Out of curiousity, how did you manage your run time speed? I'm only in 2027 and have noticed the game has significantly slowed down for me - will this continue to get worse throughout? At the minute the only leagues I've got as playable are Japan, South Korea, South Africa, USA, Brazil, Argentina and England top divisions, with Germany, Spain, Italy and France as view only. Is this too many? Would you recommend only having on the league I'm in?

If I may answer, yes the game slows down a lot. If you're noticing it already, it will get a lot worse.

Generally there's no need to have more than 3 leagues loaded at any time, but this does mean that when you finish at 1 club, you only have a choice of 2 other leagues, and it can take a while for a suitable job to come up.

I don't see any advantage in having leagues on view only, but I don't know how much this slows the processing.

Also, you may want to have the league of the nation you're managing loaded for extra players, although I actually think this is counterproductive.

goonergez · December 24, 2023

New York City FC: 2034 Review

My second full season in the big apple was an important one, as I looked to add silverware to my time at the helm. Last season we showed good progress but fell away at the end, this time around I wanted more.

It was a tough pre season however, with both first choice central midfielders being nabbed by Saudi Arabian clubs. This left me with the difficult task of rebuilding the midfield line but I seemed to do it effectively.

We would enjoy a fruitful campaign as some cracking football saw us go all the way to win the Supporters Shield (best record across entire MLS) and top the league portion of the Eastern Conference. I didn’t expect things to go as well as they did, but we were superb. Defensively we were tight, and in attack we scored plenty. We found form late on in the campaign and got lucky as Cincinnati suffered a dip in form to allow us to pip them to the post. The same happened with LA Galaxy in the other conference to allow us to lift the Supporters Shield.

Despite lifting that trophy we would still face a test if we wanted to go on and lift the MLS Cup. We faced CF Montreal in the first play off round and destroyed them. A 3-1 away win was followed by a 6-2 home one to book a semi final spot with rivals New York Red Bulls. We produced a fantastic display to win 2-0. We would then win the MLS Eastern Conference with another 2-0 victory, this time over Cincinnati. That booked us an MLS Cup match against LA Galaxy.

A fantastic game that saw us face every possible emotion. Despair when we fell behind, delight as we turned the tie around. More despair when we conceded an equaliser and utter elation when we took the lead in extra time. We clung on admirably and would lift the trophy. Capping off a phenomenal campaign for us.

Outside the league it was a season of semi finals. First up we made the semi finals of the Leagues Cup before being eliminated. Then we faced the same fate in the US Cup. The latter much more disappointing as we threw away a two goal lead to draw 2-2 and exit on penalties.

I’m delighted to have chalked another trophy off of list required, and it was an unexpected one at that. I believed we were stronger than previously but I certainly didn’t think we were capable of winning the MLS Cup. I thought that even after we had hung on to win the Supporters Shield. When we faced LA Galaxy for the trophy all my belief had gone as they had comfortably beaten us earlier in the campaign. Perhaps most excitingly we now get to enter the North American Champions League which gives me another opportunity at a continental competition. I’ve won the African and Asian ones at the first time of asking and will be hoping for more of the same this time around. I’ll be looking at how I can improve the squad to have a real crack at chalking it off. For now I have signed a new contract to stay with the club. How long for will depend on that continental trophy, but hopefully it’ll only be for the six months.

Season	Team			Position	Notes & Achievements
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24 Pretoria Callies	5th		(hired in 10th place)
2024/25 Pretoria Callies	1st(C)
2025/26 Cape Town City		12th		(hired in 11th place)
2026/27 Cape Town City		1st (C)		SA Premiership winners
2027/28 Cape Town City		3rd		SA Knockout Cup & African Champions League winners	
2028/29 Cape Town City		12th		(resigned in october)
2030	Ulsan Hyundai		3rd		Asian Champions League winners
2031	New York City FC	10th
2032	New York City FC	7th
2033	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield & MLS Eastern Conference winners


Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 Domestic Leagues (26/27 SA Premiership, 2033 MLS Cup)
1/10 Domestic Cups (27/28 SA Knockout Cup)
2/5 Continental Championships (27/28 African Champions League, 2031 Asian Champions League)
0/1 Club World Championship

International

0/5 Continental Tournaments
0/1 World Tournament

TOTAL: 5/32

AndreV1313 · December 24, 2023

SEASON 2027/2028

Fourth, and hopefully last, season at the helm of Supersport United, with hopes of winning the CAF Champions League and leaving South Africa a conqueror.

DSTV PREMIERSHIP

In the league we maintain a good pace, but the Kaizer Chiefs are simply unbeatable, scoring 70 points and winning the championship three days in advance.

MTN 8

In MTN 8 we eliminated the Orlando Pirates, now in freefall after their former glory, but in the semi-finals we were eliminated by the Kaizer Chiefs. Keep them in mind because, after the championship, this is far from the last competition in which we are eliminated by them.

TELKOM KNOCKOUT CUP

The same happens in the Telkom Knockout Cup, where after comfortable 4-2 victories against Amazulu and an impressive 7-1 win against Cape Town City, in the semifinals we are beaten by Kaizer Chiefs, who triumph in extra time.

NEDBANK CUP

Nedbank Cup? Kaizer Chiefs again, there is little to be done. Still in the semi-finals where, after victories against Ts Galaxy, Pretoria Callies and Amazulu on penalties, it will be penalties that will punish us against Kaizer Chiefs. There is very little to be done.

CAF CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

But the disappointments pale in the face of the great triumph: Supersport United are African champions. A fantastic and clear-cut journey, starting with the preliminary round, with a 14-2 victory in the aggregate against AS Otoho. Another large victory against Sagrada Esperanca by 8-2 gives us access to the groups. In the rounds we find ASEC Mimosas, Wydad Casablanca and Rivers United, scoring 18 points and beating their opponents on all fronts. In the quarter-finals against Es Sahel we don't struggle, winning overall 5-2. In the semi-finals comes the big test, against Al Ahly, winners of four of the last six editions. In the first leg in Egypt, we won 4-3, in an incredible and well-balanced match. In the return leg, we strenuously defended our lead, forcing our opponents to a 2-2 draw. The final then, against CS Sfax, was even more incredible and heart-stopping, with two draws that forced us to go to penalties. In the end we won, with incredible suffering, and ended our experience in South Africa to the applause of the cheering crowd.

Season     Team             Position  Notes and Achievements
2023/24    Black Leopards   1st       Motsepe Foundation Championship winner, promotion to DStv Premiership
2024/25   Supersport United 4th       Nedbank Cup winner
2025/26   Supersport United 4th       Telkom Knockout Cup, Nedbank Cup and CAF Confederation Cup winner 
2026/27   Supersport United 1st       DStv Premiership winner
2027/28   Supersport United 2nd       CAF Champions League winner

Challenge Progress

Club

1/10 top domestic leagues (DStv Premiership 2026/27)

1/10 domestic cups (Nedbank Cup 2024/25)

1/5 club continental championships (CAF Champions League 2027/28)

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments ()

0/1 world tournaments ()

Gregg88 · December 25, 2023

Holstein Kiel - 2027 - 2028

Well, i finally got out of Hungary. Landed in Budesliga 2 with Kiel. A team with consistency of finishing in the top 8 of that league normally, but had found themselves bottom of the league and looking for a new manager.

After joining in November 2026, we managed to finish the season in 8th which was well above what they expected. Mission success! Then came the second season, where there was only one position i wanted....TOP.

First half of the season....Results were there, but I was sitting in 4th and couldn't close on Kaiserslauten & Nurnberg.

Spoiler

Second half of the season.......with a little tweak to the tactics, we managed to turn the draws into wins.

Spoiler

Final league table

Spoiler

Now i'm going to make a go of it in the Bundesliga (with £2 mill in the kitty), unless a job comes up that can't say no to.

Challenge Progress

Spoiler

Merry Xmas!

Gammonds · December 26, 2023

Season 2030 – SEP and Ivory Coast

A Wild Ride, and Fickle Fans

I wasn’t out of work long after resigning from SuperSport. Brazilian side SEP were expected to finish in the top 3 domestically but were languishing in the mid-table muddle over the summer. This prompted a change of manager, so here we go:

Spoiler

The board expected qualification for the Copa Libertadores, so a top 4 finish preferably, but as low as 7^th should actually work. Despite being in the middle of the pack (11^th of 20) when I took over, we were within 10 points of the top, and more like 6 from the top 4. With much of the season left, a top 4 finish looked very achievable. We were also still in the Libertadores, so that one’s something of a free hit.

I also hoped to get my first international job over the summer in the post-World Cup turnover. The US fired their manager after an early exit but wouldn’t give me an interview, and instead opted for a current MLS manager. The Ivory Coast however does not seem to be able to hold on to a manager - they’d turned me down last time they were looking maybe 7 months ago. This time I’m the lucky winner, and now have 2 jobs. My quick first look at the player pool reveals an aging but still very strong core that should have no trouble in AFCON qualifying this year and if it holds together should have a decent shot at that trophy next year.

Spoiler

First, the Ivory Coast. We played 4 matches in AFCON qualifying, won 3 and lost the 4^th. That leaves us 2^nd in the group on a tiebreaker, almost certain to qualify and with a fair shot at winning the group outright. We’ll play the final 2 qualifying matches at some yet to be determined time next year, and the AFCON itself is at the end of the calendar year.

As I got to know my SEP squad, I realized the team would live and die mostly on the performances of an extremely talented young core of midfielders along with 2 attackers whose output effectively determined my offense’s end product. Along the way, I had to hope whichever of my bad options was in goal wouldn’t make a total hash of things.

My initial run of matches went well enough, and we climbed into contention for the play in stages of next year’s Libertadores. We missed an opportunity to capitalize on our improvement with a series of underperformances leading to draws in August, and a bad run in late September and early October threatened our position in the Libertadores spots, and had some fans calling for my head.

Meanwhile, we were still competing in this year’s edition of the Libertadores. The Second Round gave us a very favorable matchup against San Lorenzo, who we beat 11-1 on aggregate. That lead to River Plate in the Quarter Final, who were every bit as challenging as they looked. We came away 5-3 winners on the back of a 3-3 road draw and 2-0 home win and could count ourselves fortunate in both matches. If River Plate had been tough I assume Boca Juniors would be the same in the Semi Finals. They were not, and 9-0 across the 2 legs set up a tie with fellow Brazilian side VDG in the final.

Spoiler

That Libertadores Semi Final first leg kicked off the run of form we needed to fix ourselves in the league. 6 wins and a draw in the final 7 matches took us from 8^th to 3^rd, and quieted most of the unwelcome noise around both the side and my job.

Spoiler

6 days later we played VDG in the Libertadores Final:

Spoiler

Those fans are a fickle bunch indeed:

Spoiler

While I could move on from South America with the Libertadores safely in hand, I intend to stay and chase the domestic league and cup next season for a couple of reasons. First, I’m already in charge of a good team, and now have a full offseason and at least a bit of scouting knowledge to shape it into what I want. It strikes me as a bad gamble to leave when I’m still in need of plenty of leagues and cups for the challenge. Second, my manager is developing a bit of a reputation for job hopping, and my early career decision to interview for a whole bunch of jobs while already employed is still following me. My standing is strong enough to handle it I think, but no reason to make things harder than needed.

In terms of next year’s rebuild, one of my goaltenders and a few role players are leaving on frees, and I’ve already agreed a sale for one of my young and excellent midfielders. My other goaltender will be sold as soon as I find someone capable of starting there for me – he just doesn’t know it yet. I also expect to lose a first choice centerback who wants to leave, and at least one more midfielder is almost certain to attract a lot of attention. Fortunately, I have decent to good prospects coming along from the youth ranks in all of those positions (and others) and a transfer war chest to dig into.

Challenge Progress: 4/32

Table:

Spoiler

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year's to you all.

Edited December 26, 2023 by Gammonds
Fixing Image error... one day I'll learn

CertFM · December 27, 2023

Season 7: 2029/2030 Review

Although I have really enjoyed managing in South Africa for the first time in my FM Career, I feel it really is about time that I nail down this Champions League victory, and move on with the challenge. Last time out, I made the decision to leave Maritzburg for Sundowns and execute a 2 year plan to get them firstly into the Champions League and then win it at the first time of asking. Welcome to Phase 2 of that plan.

Spoiler

The season couldn't have started any better as we were able to win all the early tournaments including the African Super Cup (after winning the Confederation Cup last year), the Super 8 Cup and the KO Cup, the latter two have both already been won so no need to go over those in detail.

Spoiler

The league again was pretty comfortable (as it should be for a squad as good as ours), and we were able to retain our title with relative ease, but what was really impressive is that we were able to go invincible throughout which I believe may be only my second time doing this in 20 years of playing this game.

So with 4 trophies already in the bag, the coveted African Champions League is what I was resting our hopes on.

Spoiler

We breezed through the opening stages, beating both Inter Bom-Bom and AS Vascos Phoenix 19-2 and 19-0 on aggregate.

I was happy with our group stage draw also as we were grouped with Tunisian side ES Sahel, Angolan outfit Sagrada Esperanca, and Horoya AC of Guinea. All 3 sides were swept aside as we easily topped the group, winning in all 6 games and only conceding 3 goals in the process.

At this stage of proceedings, I feel very confident as we are drawn in an all South African tie against Orlando Pirates in the Quarter Finals. Domestically, they are no match for my Sundowns and I went into both games expecting to give them a thumping and send them on our way. A 4-2 away win in the first leg meant that I was feeling pretty comfortable going in to the second leg, and at home we coasted to a 3-1 win, securing our place in the last 4.

We are then drawn against ES Setif of Tunisia and again I was feeling confident whereas it turned out to be quite the test. A cagey 2-2 draw at home meant I would have to go to Tunisia and win if I were to make the final. And in the most FM way possible, the game went back and forth throughout with us taking the lead twice before being brought back level by the home side. With extra time imminent, my reserve left winger from Ethiopia breaks through and scores a tidy finish in the 94th minute to send us through to the final.

We then go on to play ES Sahel in the final who we have already beaten twice in the group stages this season. This has to be our best chance to win this competition surely.

And just like the group stages, we brush them aside with relative ease as we take a 3-1 advantage into the second leg away in Tunisia where we don't rest on our laurels and beat them 4-2 securing our continental victory.

So with that win, and then a win in the SA Cup we win a very famous sextuple without losing a single game in any competition. This may have to go down as one of my greatest achievements on this game in all honesty. Would love to hear if any of you have done something similar.

It is bittersweet though, as like promised, it is now time to resign and move on to pastures new. I'm not sure of where I want my next destination to be, but with a Pro Licence and a 4 1/2 reputation now behind me, I will be looking for underachieving teams that I think can challenge for titles pretty instantly. It is also a World Cup year so I will be checking all international jobs that become available as well.

Cheers guys and happy holidays to you all.

Season     Team                       League                 Position  Notes and Achievements
2023/24  Venda FC            South African First Division    2nd       Promotion to South African Premiership
2024/25  Venda FC            South African Premiership       11th
2025/26  Maritzburg Utd      South African Premiership       13th      National B Licence
2026/27  Maritzburg Utd      South African Premiership       1st       South African Premiership Winners, National A Licence
2027/28  Maritzburg Utd      South African Premiership       2nd       South African KO Cup, Continental B Licence
2028/29  Mamelodi Sundowns   South African Premiership       1st       Super 8 Cup, KO Cup, SA Premiership, Confederation Cup,                                                                                      Continental A Licence
2029/30  Mamelodi Sundowns   South African Premiership       1st       Domestic Quadruple, African Super Cup, African Champions League
                                                                       Continental Pro Licence

Challenge Progress

Club

1/10 top domestic leagues: South African Premiership (Maritzburg Utd, 2026/27)

1/10 domestic cups: South Africa KO Cup (Maritzburg Utd, 2027/28)

1/5 club continental championships: African Champions League (Memelodi Sundowns 2029/30)

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments ()

0/1 world tournaments ()

goonergez · December 27, 2023

New York City FC: 2034 Review

Having won the MLS Cup somewhat surprisingly last season, this campaign was all about trying to lift the North American Champions League. If we managed it then we’d clinch my third managerial continental crown at the first time of asking. A quite ridiculous record.

We would waltz our way to a second straight league win, successfully defending our Supporters Shield crown in the process. To have the best league record two seasons in a row is a great achievement, and we did so whilst also resting players ahead of cup games and continental contests.

In the post season we breezed our way through the play offs to meet Austin FC for a second straight MLS Cup crown.

We produced a dominant display to win the tie and lift a consecutive MLS Cup. In truth this seasons was much more expected than last time around. We were fantastic all season and we were pretty much favourites from a very early stage of the season. To go and do it is another thing though and ended up doing it with relative ease.

Outside of the league was a mixed bag. The US Cup was a disaster as we were beaten at the first time of asking by New England Revolution 0-2. I had rested players for the league game before it but despite being the fresher of the two sides things just didn’t work for us and we were comprehensively beaten.

We did pick up more silverware though and it’s the one we wanted. We breezed through the Champions League knockouts with a calmness and confidence to make the final. In the final we produced yet another confident performance where a goal from outstanding striker Julio Cesar secured us a solitary goal victory and with it another trophy for the challenge. I hadn’t expected to win it with such ease, but I certainly wasn’t complaining about it.

With that I achieve what I need in the USA and can look to move elsewhere as soon as possible. I’m not going to leave the club though as if I have to stay for another season waiting for a new role then we can have a go at trying to win the US Cup and grab everything available for the challenge from the USA. I will be actively seeking a route out though, just with patience to walk into the right job. Internationally I have signed on to work with the USA as well. Next year sees the next edition of the Gold Cup and with a tremendous squad I should have a genuine opportunity to clinch my first international trophy. That’s a way off yet though, so for now my focus is on finding a new role at club level and moving on for yet more trophies.

Season	Team			Position	Notes & Achievements
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24 Pretoria Callies	5th		(hired in 10th place)
2024/25 Pretoria Callies	1st(C)
2025/26 Cape Town City		12th		(hired in 11th place)
2026/27 Cape Town City		1st (C)		SA Premiership winners
2027/28 Cape Town City		3rd		SA Knockout Cup & African Champions League winners	
2028/29 Cape Town City		12th		(resigned in october)
2030	Ulsan Hyundai		3rd		Asian Champions League winners
2031	New York City FC	10th
2032	New York City FC	7th
2033	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield & MLS Eastern Conference winners
2034	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield, MLS Eastern Conference and Champions League winners



Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 Domestic Leagues (26/27 SA Premiership, 2033 MLS Cup)
1/10 Domestic Cups (27/28 SA Knockout Cup)
3/5 Continental Championships (27/28 African Champions League, 2031 Asian Champions League, 2034 NA Champions League)
0/1 Club World Championship

International

0/5 Continental Tournaments
0/1 World Tournament

TOTAL: 6/32

goonergez · December 28, 2023

USA: Gold Cup 2035

After two straight MLS Cup winning campaigns my new season didn’t go at all to plan. We suffered early exits in both the Champions League and the US Cup that pushed me into handing in my resignation at New York City FC in search of a new challenge. The departure of centre back Dimitri Ferrari seemed the defining factor and saw us sitting disappointingly down in 7th place and a long way backwards from what I had grown used to. Thankfully we lifted the Champions League last season and so I departed having won the competition that mattered the most.

Without a job at club level I took my USA team into the Gold Cup with high hopes. Two years ago I would lose the final with Mexico against the USA. This time I aimed to right that wrong on the opposite side. The US were hunting a fifth straight Gold Cup crown, whilst I looked to get my first major international tournament winners medal. For an extra element of pressure the tournament would be hosted in the USA, meaning I would lead my side in front of plenty of expectant fans.

Having won the North American Nations League earlier in the year, we headed into this tournament full of hope and ready to challenge for the trophy. we navigated a potential banana skin of a group with ease, smashing the Dominican Republic 7-0 to open up before seeing off Bermuda 3-1 and then Costa Rica 4-0. I expected more of a challenge from the latter but we comfortably picked up the points to win the group with a 100% record.

We absolutely destroyed our opponents in the quarter final and semi final to book yet another final. Firstly Guatemala were embarrassed 12-0 before we scored another 11 against Suriname. Unsurprisingly that booked us a final against Mexico in a repeat from two years previous.

My third major tournament final would finally see me get my hands on a winners medal. The final itself was a thriller. We led twice in normal time before being pegged back, and then did well to cling on for extra time as we were bombarded late on. An extra time strike from substitute Jesus Mendoza proved enough and we won the tournament after a 3-2 victory. Vindication for me personally having lost in the previous final as Mexico against the USA.

With that I pick up my first international honour and that is a bit of a relief. Having lost two major finals I had fears at 2-2 that this one would be more of the same and that I was destined for a career as the bridesmaid and never the bride. Thankfully I was wrong. I debated walking away from the USA having won this tournament, but we will enter next years Copa America as the holders and o think it’s a decent chance for me to try and pick up another major trophy. I’m not sure it’s possible but there aren’t any major tournaments around the globe before it so I may as well stick around. I’m also patiently waiting for a new club job. The next few months could be very intriguing for my managerial career.

Season	Team			Position	Notes & Achievements
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24 Pretoria Callies	5th		(hired in 10th place)
2024/25 Pretoria Callies	1st(C)
2025/26 Cape Town City		12th		(hired in 11th place)
2026/27 Cape Town City		1st (C)		SA Premiership winners
2027/28 Cape Town City		3rd		SA Knockout Cup & African Champions League winners	
2028/29 Cape Town City		12th		(resigned in october)
2030	Ulsan Hyundai		3rd		Asian Champions League winners
2031	New York City FC	10th
2032	New York City FC	7th
2033	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield & MLS Eastern Conference winners
2034	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield, MLS Eastern Conference and Champions League winners



Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 Domestic Leagues (26/27 SA Premiership, 2033 MLS Cup)
1/10 Domestic Cups (27/28 SA Knockout Cup)
3/5 Continental Championships (27/28 African Champions League, 2031 Asian Champions League, 2034 NA Champions League)
0/1 Club World Championship

International

1/5 Continental Tournaments (2035 Gold Cup)
0/1 World Tournament

TOTAL: 7/32

corinthiano · December 28, 2023

@goonergez well done on the trophies picked up in the US at club and international level, is it South America next for you?

corinthiano · December 28, 2023

2026 Season Review

I was rejected for so many jobs I think I need to review how I handle interviews...this meant another season with Roasso Kumamoto which ended up not being too bad. We made more improvements to the first team and now have money to sign younger Japanese talent instead of players in the late 20s. We were up there all year in the J-League and in the end only 7 points from the top and with qualification to the Champions League secured. We also did amazingly well in the cups and managed to get ourselves a double and the first competition towards this challenge. We also played in the Champions League knockouts and lost out to South Korea's Jeonbuk in the Quarter Finals.

I am going to be picky with jobs again as we are close to the title in Japan and will be back in the Champions League. Even if a job came up I'd trust myself to mess up the interview, but I will only go for top clubs now that are playing continental football.

Star Player - Christy Manzinga yet again but he is getting on now and wasnt an automatic starter, think it is time to move him on to open up a foreign slot for a younger star,

2026 World Cup

I joined with the team already qualified and the expectation was to make it to the Second Round which should be easy as we got a lucky draw.

Group Stage

A draw against Austria in the first game despite dominating was frustrating, but we then comfortably beat Saudi Arabia and Canada to finish top of the group.

Knockouts

We kept getting favorable draws but still did excellently to beat Jamaica, Turkiye and Ecuador on the way to the Semi Final. We put up a brave display against France there but collapsed in extra time. The best performance of the tournament was save for the Third Place game where we convincingly beat Spain to go one better than Morocco in 2022 and have the strongest performance by an African team in World Cup history!

Africa Cup of Nations Qualifiers

Comfortably qualified for next year's tournament. If we keep current form we have a real good shot at winning it next year.

Progress

Club

Nation

Challenge Summary

JamLUFC · December 28, 2023

2027 - Vissel Kobe / Ivory Coast

Despite another year vowing to leave, I opted to stay at Vissel Kobe (mostly due to no real opportunities) and was glad I did! I managed to tick off my first trophies with the J-League and the J-League Cup in the bag. I did lose in the fourth round of the Emperors Cup so never came anywhere near the treble but a cup and league title finally on the board gives me that motivation to really kick this into gear.

I'm in the last 16 of the Champions League and that's my main focus now. Win or lose in it, I'll be resigning as soon as the competition ends for me as I want to start managing elsewhere. The timing will help me get an early season job in the MLS or end of season role in South Africa, so should be able to assess what roles and jobs have come available.

The Ivory Coast job didn't go as smoothly in the most frustrating fashion. I pretty much blitzed every game I played, and smashed through the group stage of the African Cup of Nations including beating Egypt 4-0. Last 16 I was drew with hosts Mali which struck me as a routine win - until I was 4-0 down at half time! I pulled a goal back in the second half but was nowhere near. Straight after the game I resigned to save getting the inevitable sack. I'm going to stay clear of international management for a while now, unless the South Korea, Japan, USA or Mexico jobs come up going into their major tournaments!

goonergez · December 28, 2023

@corinthiano you are spot on my friend. I am finally employed at club level and it is indeed in South America. Update to come of course 😁

corinthiano · December 28, 2023

@JamLUFC - Nicely done on the J-League win, I found that 90+points is really hard to get as the league is so even. Hopefully you can make a good run in the ACL!

AndreV1313 · December 28, 2023

SEASON 2028-2029

After five seasons in South Africa, we arrived on a new continent, aiming to win national trophies as well as the Asian Champions League, at the helm of Sidney FC.
I have to say that after all those seasons in South Africa, to only face two competitions seemed definitely strange, but anyway, here is how it went.

AUSTRALIA CUP

In the Australia Cup we won immediately in the first round, beating the Melbourne Knights 3-1. In the second round we won a prestigious victory against one of the best teams in Australia, Adelaide United, beaten 2-0.
The dream was interrupted in extra time of the quarter-finals, however, with the victory of the Wellington Phoenix signed by Valentin Adamo's double, despite Segecic's initial advantage.

ISUZU UTE-A LEAGUE

In the regular season, we had a season without ups or downs, finishing in fourth place with 49 points, 14 wins, 7 draws and 5 losses, 9 points behind the leader Wellington Phoenix.

In the Finals we easily beat Melbourne City in the first round. Adelaide United also went down in the semi-finals, with a win in Sydney and a draw in the return.
Once again it was the Wellington Phoenix who spoiled the party, winning the final on penalties after the 2-2 draw in regulation time.

Season     Team             Position  Notes and Achievements
2023/24    Black Leopards   1st       Motsepe Foundation Championship winner, promotion to DStv Premiership
2024/25   Supersport United 4th       Nedbank Cup winner
2025/26   Supersport United 4th       Telkom Knockout Cup, Nedbank Cup and CAF Confederation Cup winner 
2026/27   Supersport United 1st       DStv Premiership winner
2027/28   Supersport United 2nd       CAF Champions League winner
2028/29   Sydney FC         4th/2nd  

Challenge Progress

Club

1/10 top domestic leagues (DStv Premiership 2026/27)

1/10 domestic cups (Nedbank Cup 2024/25)

1/5 club continental championships (CAF Champions League 2027/28)

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments ()

0/1 world tournaments ()

goonergez · December 29, 2023

USA: Copa America 2036

My departure from New York still saw me unemployed at club level as we rattled through 2036 and to the Copa America hosted by Uruguay. As reigning champions my team would be well fancied, especially sitting 4th in the world rankings. I’ll be honest and say that I didn’t honestly believe we would be able to go all the way and win it. But it made sense to stick around and try.

A 2-0 win over Mexico had given us the North American Nations League title earlier in the year and we headed into the Copa America in fine form. Squad selection was relatively simple and we went into the tournament with a tough looking group.

Drawn in a potentially tricky group we made light work of it on our way to the knockout stages. A narrow win over Venezuela was followed by a comfortable dispatching of Bolivia to set up a winner wins the group match with Brazil. We were fantastic and blew them away to finish as group winners en route to the quarter finals. The Brazil victory was my 20th as USA manager. Twenty wins from twenty matches as boss.

After breezing our way through the group stage it should’ve come as no surprise that we’d scramble through our first knockout game. Despite dominating chile we conceded a late equaliser to force the game into penalties. Thankfully we held our nerve to progress before comfortably navigating our way through the hosts Uruguay to reach the final. Argentina awaited us in an exciting 3rd vs 4th in the world rankings matchup.

Probably the most exciting and nerve racking game of my managerial career as we managed to just about lift the trophy. Sitting 0-2 behind I feared the worst after an awful start. Thankfully we pulled one back just before half time before we then produced a phenomenal second half to turn the tie around. We dug deep to cling on at the death and that was it. We were once again Copa America champions.

An unexpected triumph but it’s fair to say my USA side is beginning to become an international powerhouse. We’ve won 20 of my 21 matches in charge, the draw with chile the only blemish. We’ve won 2 nations league titles as well as the gold cup and now the Copa America as well. I had planned to resign at the end of this tournament but now feel I may as well stay. We’re up to 2nd in the world rankings and the next World Cup is now just under two years away. I’m going to stay and see if I can lead us to world glory before departing. There is another edition of the gold cup to come before that though so we will have to do well in that before we can think of the World Cup.

On the club side I am still unemployed and awaiting my next destination. I have an idea of where I want to go next but at the moment no opportunities have presented themselves to me. Thankfully my reputation and success elsewhere should be such that when one of said opportunities arises I can grab the position. I’m excited to get cracking but at the same time I’m ok with just trying to grab competitions on the international stage at the moment.

Season	Team			Position	Notes & Achievements
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24 Pretoria Callies	5th		(hired in 10th place)
2024/25 Pretoria Callies	1st(C)
2025/26 Cape Town City		12th		(hired in 11th place)
2026/27 Cape Town City		1st (C)		SA Premiership winners
2027/28 Cape Town City		3rd		SA Knockout Cup & African Champions League winners	
2028/29 Cape Town City		12th		(resigned in october)
2030	Ulsan Hyundai		3rd		Asian Champions League winners
2031	New York City FC	10th
2032	New York City FC	7th
2033	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield & MLS Eastern Conference winners
2034	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield, MLS Eastern Conference and Champions League winners



Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 Domestic Leagues (26/27 SA Premiership, 2033 MLS Cup)
1/10 Domestic Cups (27/28 SA Knockout Cup)
3/5 Continental Championships (27/28 African Champions League, 2031 Asian Champions League, 2034 NA Champions League)
0/1 Club World Championship

International

2/5 Continental Tournaments (2035 Gold Cup, 2036 Copa America)
0/1 World Tournament

TOTAL: 8/32

JamLUFC · December 30, 2023

2028 - Vissel Kobe

Half season update, but I managed to get the Asian Champions League in the bag. We got lucky having a Thai team in the semi finals, but I was worried to come up against an Al-Ahli team in the final which contained Son, Romero, Emi Martinez, Coman, Vlasic, Fabinho and Theo Hernandez however we smashed the first leg 3-0 before drawing away 1-1 to take the trophy - adding to the Super Cup we won earlier in the season. The club should also win the league this year too, I'm second with 34 points after 14 games, 3 points off the leaders but also with 3 games in hand however as I've now got the J-League and the J-League cup along with the Champions League that's my time to resign and look for the next job.

I've been offered the Montreal job the day before the final, but now I have this trophy I think I can wait it out and see what other jobs come up especially with the South African season also finishing. #

That's three trophies in the bag now, the next steps are all about timing and getting the right jobs at the right time should help me tick a few more off in the next couple of seasons.

Gregg88 · December 30, 2023

Marseille & Ivory Coast

After finishing 7th in my first crack at the Bundesliga with Kiel, Marseille came knocking. That team i couldn't say no to!

The team were well set up to have a go for the title, along with having so much dead wood that I could sell and make some money for transfers coming in. £71 mllion coming in through sales, then £138 million outgoing through replacements.

The Champions league didn't go to plan - getting knocked out in the round of 16.

But this happened.....

Spoiler

Followed by.....

Spoiler

Then I look at our finances and see £60 million in the red. Time for me to look for other jobs i reckon :lol: As i write this, the Liverpool job is insecure......

Somewhat luckily, Ivory Coast don't have a manager heading into the world cup which is hosted there. Can I bring World Cup glory to the hosts? I think we all know the answer, but i'll pretend I have the backing of everyone here :brock:

Challenge Progress.....

Spoiler

Edited December 31, 2023 by Gregg88
Typo

Gregg88 · December 31, 2023

.................Ivory Coast sacked me.

AndreV1313 · January 1

SEASON 2029/2030

Second season in Australia, the first that will see us participate in the Asian Champions. The feeling ahead of this season is good: the team has grown and got used to the form, making us competitive on all fronts. That is how we have fared.

AUSTRALIA CUP

In the Australia Cup we do as well as we can, routing every opponent. In the first round we beat the Western Sydney Wanderers 3-0, then repeated in the second round against the Wellington Phoenix, in one of the most fearsome matches of the competition. In the quarter-finals we needed extra time to triumph, beating Melbourne City 3-1. It was overtime again that helped us in the semi-finals, with a 4-2 victory over the Newcastle Jets. The time came for the grand final and at the Western Sydney Stadium there was no history: 4-0 thanks to goals from Fitzgerald, Laws, Irving and Amanatidis and the first competition win of the season.

ISUZU UTE-A LEAGUE

In the league, we had a very up and down season in the regular season, going from a convincing first place to a second place far from the top, with a disastrous finish full of defeats.

In the Finals we turn things around, beating Adelaide United in the semi-finals, beating them 4-1 in the first leg and drawing 1-1 in the return. The final saw us take on the regular season winners, the Wellington Phoenix, who we beat on penalties after a thrilling comeback in regulation time. After going down 3-1 in regulation time we found the 3-3 draw in the 82nd minute, and even in extra time we had the strength to regain parity after our opponents' third lead of the match. In the penalty shoot-out we do well, and we also triumph in the championship, after the final we lost last year.

AFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

In the Champions League we easily advance to the group stage, beating Abahani KC and Kawasaki-Frontale by a wide margin. In the group stage we came second, behind Tosu, scoring fifteen points against the Japanese team, Shandong and Yadanarbon. It was Tosu that we found ourselves against in the second round, beating them 4-1 in the first leg and drawing 2-2 in the return. Our path was interrupted in the quarter-finals, with a 3-1 defeat in the return against Ulsan after a 2-0 win in the first leg, which saw us leave the competition due to away goals.

Season     Team             Position  Notes and Achievements
2023/24    Black Leopards   1st       Motsepe Foundation Championship winner, promotion to DStv Premiership
2024/25   Supersport United 4th       Nedbank Cup winner
2025/26   Supersport United 4th       Telkom Knockout Cup, Nedbank Cup and CAF Confederation Cup winner 
2026/27   Supersport United 1st       DStv Premiership winner
2027/28   Supersport United 2nd       CAF Champions League winner
2028/29   Sydney FC         4th/2nd 
2029/30   Sydney FC         2nd/1st   Australia Cup and Isuzu UTE-A League winner 

Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 top domestic leagues (DStv Premiership 2026/27; Isuzu UTE-A League 2029/30)

2/10 domestic cups (Nedbank Cup 2024/25; Australia Cup 2029/30)

1/5 club continental championships (CAF Champions League 2027/28)

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments ()

0/1 world tournaments ()

PS. Happy new year to everyone!

Edited January 1 by AndreV1313

JamLUFC · January 1

Any tips on managing in the MLS? I managed to get the LAFC at the end of October when they finished 4th in one league but 15th in the overall league. I then had a two legged game in the round of a cup which I think is actually the league against LA Galaxy, drew the first leg but lost on penalties, then drew the second leg and won on penalties so needed a third leg which I lost! I don't know whether that was the league or cup or what but I'm out of that, which is fine as preparing for next season was more important.

So what counts as winning the league and what's a valid cup to win in the MLS? It all seems to blend into one.

That's not even starting on the drafts and contracts! I'm in mid January and already had three drafts so far, my squad is a bit of a mess tbf and I have no idea how to buy other players from MLS teams, and buying foreign players have too many different contracts!

I think I'll give it a year in the MLS but I'm not going to be against a move to Mexico next year!

vikeologist · January 2

Quote

MLS (USA) - For challenge purposes the MLS Cup (called 'Major League Soccer' on the competitions screen) counts as the league, and the US Open Cup (called the 'US Cup' on the competitions screen) counts as the cup. The Canadian Championship is the cup if you're playing as a Canadian side, either in the MLS or the Canadian league. The league section of the MLS (Supporters Shield) don't count for anything. Neither does the Leagues Cup (featuring US and Mexican teams) count towards the challenge.

goonergez · January 2

I’ll be honest @JamLUFC I love managing in the MLS. It’s extremely complicated but extremely rewarding.

You don’t buy players per se. You have to trade. Getting allocation money is important as that’s what you use to bring in players from other MLS teams. I suggest for the first few months literally accepting any trade offers you get from other teams. Make the most of international spots as that’s where the bulk of your quality comes in. For that you do buy players as normal. I tend to focus on having 5-6 top quality foreign players and then add some decent USA players around that. Find a shortlist of who you want and offer money and draft picks to other MLS sides for the players you want.

The drafts are on the whole pointless. The superdraft first round is pretty much the only round of any of the drafts worth doing. Trade away any second or third round picks you can for either money or in offers for other players. It normally takes me 12-24 months to build a squad I want and then you can pick success up fairly easy.

With regards to contracts make the most of the fact you can use general allocation money to buy down the cost of players salaries against the salary cap. Can overspend quite comfortably as long as you buy down the cost of your big earners.

In short general allocation money is hugely important and you use that for trading for MLS players and for buying down the cost of player contracts against the salary cap.

The MLS season basically just qualifies you for the end of season play offs which you then have to go through the knockouts to win the league (the MLS cup). The US Cup is the domestic cup. You’ll be ok with LAFC but bear in mind you can’t qualify for the champions league through the MLS with a Canadian team. I fell foul of that last year with Toronto FC. Any other help I’d like to think I could be of service. I have kind of got my head around the MLS but it’s extremely complicated.

goonergez · January 2

Palmeiras FC: 2036 Review

The aftermath of the Copa America gave me a period of reflection before I finally managed to grab a new position at club level. Towards the end of September I was finally offered a position of interest for me as I took charge of Palmeiras in Brazil. A quarter final defeat to São Paulo in the Copa Libertadores had proven the final straw for the previous regime and I came into the club with the task of securing qualification for that continental competition again. The club had also suffered a semi final defeat in the Brazilian Cup and so my focus would solely be on the league campaign.

With 11 league matches remaining the club sat down in 7th place, one spot off of said Libertadores qualification spots. The league title was already well beyond reach but with a good end to the season we had the possibility of climbing significantly up the table. The top four spots would qualify for the Libertadores without the need of qualifying rounds and that was something I was keen to do. The squad I inherited looked slightly weak defensively but there was a plethora of attacking options and I was confident. I was also armed with a £50,000,000 transfer kitty, although wouldn’t aim to use any until the end of the current campaign.

We would achieve the absolute most we could really, going on a great run until we lost the final league match of the season. By then the good form had seen us climb to 4th though, snatching the last automatic group stage spot for the Copa Libertadores. I couldn’t have achieved any more than that but that certainly capped off a fine spell so far.

Next season is about silverware and that’s the only priority. I’d love to pick up another league title or a domestic cup but the priority will undoubtably be the Copa Libertadores. The season here in Brazil is extremely long and in truth I don’t particularly want to stay here long. It’s a challenge but with the funds I have and the players I’ve inherited the potential is definitely there to grab plenty of success.

Season	Team			Position	Notes & Achievements
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24 Pretoria Callies	5th		(hired in 10th place)
2024/25 Pretoria Callies	1st(C)
2025/26 Cape Town City		12th		(hired in 11th place)
2026/27 Cape Town City		1st (C)		SA Premiership winners
2027/28 Cape Town City		3rd		SA Knockout Cup & African Champions League winners	
2028/29 Cape Town City		12th		(resigned in october)
2030	Ulsan Hyundai		3rd		Asian Champions League winners
2031	New York City FC	10th
2032	New York City FC	7th
2033	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield & MLS Eastern Conference winners
2034	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield, MLS Eastern Conference and Champions League winners
2035	-
2036	Palmeiras		4th		(hired in 7th)



Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 Domestic Leagues (26/27 SA Premiership, 2033 MLS Cup)
1/10 Domestic Cups (27/28 SA Knockout Cup)
3/5 Continental Championships (27/28 African Champions League, 2031 Asian Champions League, 2034 NA Champions League)
0/1 Club World Championship

International

2/5 Continental Tournaments (2035 Gold Cup, 2036 Copa America)
0/1 World Tournament

TOTAL: 8/32

AndreV1313 · January 2

SEASON 2030/2031

After last season's double victory, which saw us triumph in the cup and championship, our third season in Australia begins. A season in which, after many reinforcements, above all Marcus Thuram, we will go on the assault in the AFC Champions League.

AUSTRALIA CUP

In the Australia Cup, despite a great start, we stop at the quarter-finals, against Adelaide United. In the first round we eliminated the Peninsula Power 4-0, thanks to Thuram's double and goals from Pritchard and O'Grady-Macken. We do the same with a clear 6-0 win against Avondale, without any difficulty. It was Adelaide United, who then won the competition, who eliminated us, as mentioned earlier: our opponents won 2-1 thanks to goals from Mijalovic and Tilio.

ISUZU UTE-A LEAGUE

In the league we are literally perfect, both in the regular season and in the finals. In the regular season we have a record-breaking championship, breaking records for wins, goals and points, winning 21 games and drawing five in 26 total.

In the finals we win the tournament, first eliminating Melbourne City 5-2 on aggregate, and then Adelaide United, avenging their cup defeat by beating them 3-2 in extra time.

AFC CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

In the Champions League we go directly into the group stage, where we meet Beijing, Jeonbuk and Port. We score a total of 10 points, the same as Beijing, passing the round as first thanks to goal difference. In the second round we met Ulsan, whom we beat in total 5-3, with a 2-1 first leg and a 3-2 return. In the quarter-finals we needed only a 2-1 double to overcome the Thais of Buiram United. It was also an easy job in the semi-finals, where the 4-2 first leg was enough to overcome Shonan, with whom we drew 1-1 in the return leg. It was in the final that the real feat came, with a 2-2 draw in the first leg against Al Nassr, a team whose players included Isak, Kessié and Kimmich, and a 2-1 win in the return that crowned us champions.

Season     Team             Position  Notes and Achievements
2023/24    Black Leopards   1st       Motsepe Foundation Championship winner, promotion to DStv Premiership
2024/25   Supersport United 4th       Nedbank Cup winner
2025/26   Supersport United 4th       Telkom Knockout Cup, Nedbank Cup and CAF Confederation Cup winner 
2026/27   Supersport United 1st       DStv Premiership winner
2027/28   Supersport United 2nd       CAF Champions League winner
2028/29   Sydney FC         4th/2nd 
2029/30   Sydney FC         2nd/1st   Australia Cup and Isuzu UTE-A League winner 
2030/31   Sydney FC         1st/1st   Isuzu UTE-A League and ACF Champions League winner

Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 top domestic leagues (DStv Premiership 2026/27; Isuzu UTE-A League 2029/30)

2/10 domestic cups (Nedbank Cup 2024/25; Australia Cup 2029/30)

2/5 club continental championships (CAF Champions League 2027/28; ACF Champions League 2030/31)

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments ()

0/1 world tournaments ()

CertFM · January 3

After completing Africa, it was time for the next step. With an increased reputation, I was more selective with the jobs I applied for, only going for teams in continental competition and teams that I felt could contend for titles.

I applied for jobs across North America, South America and Asia as I wanted to tick these continents off first before heading to Europe. After multiple interviews and getting quite a few offers back in return, I decided my next move would be...

Spoiler

Corinthians in Brazil. This is a massive club in a great league and I feel that being successful here will only do great things for my manager in the long-term.

As shown, the club were underperforming as they were in 17th place when I took over but we had 3 games in hand on some teams, and our squad was far too strong to get relegated so I had no issues with the current club scenario.

After the 2030 World Cup took place, many jobs were up for grabs as some nations underperformed. I applied for several but I don't think I could believe I got offered the job I did.

Spoiler

Never did I think I would take control of Brazil this early. I'm not sure if it's down to me managing in Brazil already and having a feel for things or something else. Nigeria also offered me the job for their national team, and maybe would have made more sense as they had AFCON coming up sooner than the Copa America but who could turn down Brazil.

With the team 1st in the world rankings and having players like Vini Jr, Martinelli, Rodrygo and now established player Endrick in the side, I am very looking forward to where I can take this team.

Now it's time to get cracking on in my 2 new jobs and I'll provide an update at the end of the 2030 season.

corinthiano · January 4

5 hours ago, CertFM said:

After completing Africa, it was time for the next step. With an increased reputation, I was more selective with the jobs I applied for, only going for teams in continental competition and teams that I felt could contend for titles.

I applied for jobs across North America, South America and Asia as I wanted to tick these continents off first before heading to Europe. After multiple interviews and getting quite a few offers back in return, I decided my next move would be...

Hide contents

Corinthians in Brazil. This is a massive club in a great league and I feel that being successful here will only do great things for my manager in the long-term.

As shown, the club were underperforming as they were in 17th place when I took over but we had 3 games in hand on some teams, and our squad was far too strong to get relegated so I had no issues with the current club scenario.

After the 2030 World Cup took place, many jobs were up for grabs as some nations underperformed. I applied for several but I don't think I could believe I got offered the job I did.

Hide contents

Never did I think I would take control of Brazil this early. I'm not sure if it's down to me managing in Brazil already and having a feel for things or something else. Nigeria also offered me the job for their national team, and maybe would have made more sense as they had AFCON coming up sooner than the Copa America but who could turn down Brazil.

With the team 1st in the world rankings and having players like Vini Jr, Martinelli, Rodrygo and now established player Endrick in the side, I am very looking forward to where I can take this team.

Now it's time to get cracking on in my 2 new jobs and I'll provide an update at the end of the 2030 season.

You picked a great couple of teams

goonergez · January 6

Palmeiras FC: 2037 Review

Coming into my first full season as manager I had high hopes for plenty of successes. In truth I shouldn’t have. We added some quality to our squad in pre season as I looked to build a team capable of challenging for major honours. Central defender Joanderson was the pick of them and slotted seamlessly into our defensive line.

We began the season well enough, breezing to the São Paulo state title to lift my first silverware as boss. We lost just one match during the league stage to Corinthians as we finished top of the pile. The defeat came in our final match after we’d already clinched the league. The knockouts proved no challenge and we breezed through to win the trophy.

Outside of that things didn’t go quite so smoothly though. We crashed out of the Brazilian Cup at the first hurdle, losing out by a single goal over two legs against Flamengo. That was disappointing but understandable. What wasn’t was crashing out of the Copa Libertadores to Athletico Paranelse. We breezed through the group stage as group winners but then lost out at the Quarter Final stage. Yet again by a solitary goal.

Our Brazilian league campaign also didn’t go to plan. For half a season we were sublime, but then we just drew too many matches during the run in that dropped us off the pace. In the end we slipped out of a title race and would end the season in 4th. A disappointing end to what looked for so long to be a promising season.

This season definitely gets summed up as a frustrating one. I had high hopes we could pick up some trophies but in the end we got just the one, and the least important one at that. On the plus side we showed for the most part that we can be competitive with near enough anybody. Next season is all about silverware though and it’s pivotal we win some. The Copa Libertadores will be priority but I’ll be disappointed if we don’t pick up a league title or the domestic cup. Our squad is exceptional and we should be even better next time around with another transfer window to strengthen.

Season	Team			Position	Notes & Achievements
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24 Pretoria Callies	5th		(hired in 10th place)
2024/25 Pretoria Callies	1st(C)
2025/26 Cape Town City		12th		(hired in 11th place)
2026/27 Cape Town City		1st (C)		SA Premiership winners
2027/28 Cape Town City		3rd		SA Knockout Cup & African Champions League winners	
2028/29 Cape Town City		12th		(resigned in october)
2030	Ulsan Hyundai		3rd		Asian Champions League winners
2031	New York City FC	10th
2032	New York City FC	7th
2033	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield & MLS Eastern Conference winners
2034	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield, MLS Eastern Conference and Champions League winners
2035	-
2036	Palmeiras		4th		(hired in 7th)
2037	Palmeiras		4th		Sao Paulo State winners



Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 Domestic Leagues (26/27 SA Premiership, 2033 MLS Cup)
1/10 Domestic Cups (27/28 SA Knockout Cup)
3/5 Continental Championships (27/28 African Champions League, 2031 Asian Champions League, 2034 NA Champions League)
0/1 Club World Championship

International

2/5 Continental Tournaments (2035 Gold Cup, 2036 Copa America)
0/1 World Tournament

TOTAL: 8/32

goonergez · January 6

USA: World Cup 2038

For all the successful tournaments I had enjoyed as manager of the USA, I should’ve guessed my reign would end in poor circumstances. We travelled to South Africa for the World Cup, full of hopes that we could potentially lift the trophy. We were ranked 2nd in the world and that gave us a real belief we could make some waves. I never truly considered us one of the favourites but I did think we had an opportunity to go deep in the tournament.

Drawn in a group with Austria, Egypt and Qatar I had high hopes. We started off well enough, beaten Austria 1-0 and then thumping Qatar 6-1. Last up was Egypt and we were woeful. A 2-3 defeat was only my second as USA manager but was enough to have us finish in 2nd place in the group.

That gave us a tricky looking second round tie against the hosts of the tournament. We were destroyed. A humiliating 1-6 defeat saw us crash out of the tournament and saw me hand in my resignation within minutes of the full time whistle. A disastrous end to a fantastic reign.

After two nations league crowns, two Gold Cups and a Copa America I leave my role as USA manager amid a huge amount of disappointment. I hadn’t expected to win the World Cup but I certainly expected more than we produced. It’s a disappointing end for me but I planned to leave at the end of the tournament anyways, it just happened a few weeks earlier than I had hoped. For now I’ll wait and see what jobs come available at international level after the World Cup ends. I’m in no rush.

Season	Team			Position	Notes & Achievements
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24 Pretoria Callies	5th		(hired in 10th place)
2024/25 Pretoria Callies	1st(C)
2025/26 Cape Town City		12th		(hired in 11th place)
2026/27 Cape Town City		1st (C)		SA Premiership winners
2027/28 Cape Town City		3rd		SA Knockout Cup & African Champions League winners	
2028/29 Cape Town City		12th		(resigned in october)
2030	Ulsan Hyundai		3rd		Asian Champions League winners
2031	New York City FC	10th
2032	New York City FC	7th
2033	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield & MLS Eastern Conference winners
2034	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield, MLS Eastern Conference and Champions League winners
2035	-
2036	Palmeiras		4th		(hired in 7th)
2037	Palmeiras		4th		Sao Paulo State winners



Challenge Progress

Club

2/10 Domestic Leagues (26/27 SA Premiership, 2033 MLS Cup)
1/10 Domestic Cups (27/28 SA Knockout Cup)
3/5 Continental Championships (27/28 African Champions League, 2031 Asian Champions League, 2034 NA Champions League)
0/1 Club World Championship

International

2/5 Continental Tournaments (2035 Gold Cup, 2036 Copa America)
0/1 World Tournament

TOTAL: 8/32

_JHTB_ · January 6

C.F. Monterrey

Liga MX – 2029/30

It did a while to find a new job and we had started the season with Palmeiras pretty strongly and were challenging towards the top of the league and had actually progressed decently well in the Club World Cup. However, I felt a chance to join Monterrey was too good an opportunity to pass up, they were qualified for the next CONCACAF Champions League and were one of the favourites in the Mexican league. In fact they had lost the last two Champions League finals so were one of the strongest teams I could have gotten.

Actually, I thought our squad wasn’t fantastic, at least for the league due to the league restrictions on players in the squad that weren’t born in Mexico and I had taken charge quite late into the transfer window so was hard to scout around to bring in Mexican reinforcements. I guess the rest of the league was in a similar position to us however as we still put on a strong showing in the Apertura despite me not being too happy with our overall squad balance. In the Apertura we were challenging along with Club America for the league stage win but ultimately missed out on goal difference, but the important thing was that we were in the chance of a league title. Our Apertura knockouts didn’t start fantastically as we were uninspiring over both legs in the Quarter final drawing both fixtures 1-1, progressing by virtue of being the higher seed. Following this we actually lost the first leg of the next tie away from home before we started to look like a team capable of winning the league. We overturned the 2-1 deficit in emphatic fashion winning 3-0 at home to qualify for the final. Thankfully, we played more like the last game than the first 3 in the final as we won both legs to claim the Apertura title.

By the time the Champions League started we had already strengthened our squad so I was pretty confident that we would be able to put on a good showing, and so we did. In the first 3 rounds we scored 7, 7 and 9 goals respectively over the two legs conceding 6 across all ties to comprehensively set up an all Mexican affair in the Semi-Final. We started the semi-final as we had played the other rounds racing into a 3 goal lead in the first leg at home, the second leg however, was much closer with us conceding early on to make it a bit less comfortable. Thankfully we scored twice quickly after the break and despite conceding to only draw on the night it was still a fairly comfortable passage to the Final. The final was probably our most comprehensive performance of the competition as we didn’t allow our opponents a single shot on target. We took the lead early before doubling it before half-time and then saw the game out just allowing for us to get a 3^rd to seal the victory and the Champions League. The two goalscorers in the final for us were both actually academy products which was a nice bonus.

In the Clausura we were much stronger than the Apertura which was in part due to us signing some of the better Mexican born players from our league rivals. This saw us top the league phase with just one loss to our name although we made tough work of the league playoff. The quarter final we went 3-0 down in the first leg before battling back to 4-4 on the night before winning the home tie. The Semi-Final we were poor in a 2-0 loss against the team we’d just beaten in the Champions league and were 0-0 at half time in the second leg before we demolished them 6-0 in the second half. The final, again we were poor in the first leg succumbing to a 3-1 loss which flattered us before comfortably winning 3-0 in the home leg to secure the Apertura and Clausura league double win.

Key Player:

Oscar Escamilla – When I first joined the team I managed to tie him down to a new contract amid interest from European teams and I’m glad I did as he was a huge part of our good form, 21 goals and 15 assists from the attacking midfield position – someone who I might look to sign at another club.

Progress

Again we’re at a stage where there isn’t any benefit from me staying. I have applied to the Fiorentina job who had a poor season, but recently had a tycoon takeover so it could be a good club to get a foothold in the European leagues. Other than that, there isn’t really that many club jobs available this summer, though that could change after the World Cup. I am hoping I can land a national job after the World Cup to start working towards that side a little more.

goonergez · January 7

Palmeiras: 2038 Review

My second full campaign in charge of Palmeiras would be much more successful as I looked to grab some trophies and depart Brazil. The long seasons here are a killer and I didn’t want to spend any longer than necessary to pick up the required silverware and then depart.

The pre season was busy as we added some significant quality to our ranks. Last season we were too far off the pace for my liking and I tried to counter that by bringing in some more quality in depth. It certainly paid off.

We began by winning the São Paulo State championship again before heading into our Brazilian league campaign.

We would lift the title but it wouldn’t come without its fair share of drama. We were in a three way fight for the most part. Flamengo and Internacional our main rivals. We defeated Flamengo with four games remaining to eliminate them from the race before losing back to back games. We played our last league game in the penultimate week of the season and picked up a huge three points. That meant if Internacional won their last two they would pip us to the crown. They would win the first before drawing 4-4 on the final day to give us the crown. A remarkable end to the campaign.

It would end up being a treble for us as we won the most important of the competitions we participated in. We breezed through the group before comfortable dispatching Libertad in the first knockout round. Next up we produced a sensational second leg to defeat River Plate 3-1 and overturn a 0-1 defeat in the first leg. Our nemesis Flamengo awaited in the semi finals and after a 1-1 draw away we produced probably the best performance of my reign. A comfortable 3-1 victory put us into the final. We controlled the final and thoroughly deserved the victory we got. With that we were South American champions.

The only disappointment was our efforts in the Brazilian cup as we crashed out early on yet again. Gremio our conquerors this time around. What a fantastic season though. We managed to win that elusive league title whilst also picking up the continental crown. I couldn’t be happier and I’m delighted to add two more trophies to my tally. For now I will stick here for the new campaign although now is about time for me to head to Europe. I’m excited for this next leg of my journey and now it’s going to become a bit more serious. At international level I am still unemployed but still actively seeking a new role. I’m at the stage in my career where I can chase big clubs and nations and that is exactly what I am planning on doing.

Season	Team			Position	Notes & Achievements
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24 Pretoria Callies	5th		(hired in 10th place)
2024/25 Pretoria Callies	1st(C)
2025/26 Cape Town City		12th		(hired in 11th place)
2026/27 Cape Town City		1st (C)		SA Premiership winners
2027/28 Cape Town City		3rd		SA Knockout Cup & African Champions League winners	
2028/29 Cape Town City		12th		(resigned in october)
2030	Ulsan Hyundai		3rd		Asian Champions League winners
2031	New York City FC	10th
2032	New York City FC	7th
2033	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield & MLS Eastern Conference winners
2034	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield, MLS Eastern Conference and Champions League winners
2035	-
2036	Palmeiras		4th		(hired in 7th)
2037	Palmeiras		4th		Sao Paulo State winners
2038	Palmeiras		1st (C)		First Division, Sao Paulo State & Copa Libertadores winners


Challenge Progress

Club

3/10 Domestic Leagues (26/27 SA Premiership, 2033 MLS Cup, 2038 Brazilian First Division)
1/10 Domestic Cups (27/28 SA Knockout Cup)
4/5 Continental Championships (27/28 African Champions League, 2031 Asian Champions League, 2034 NA Champions League, 2038 Copa Libertadores)
0/1 Club World Championship

International

2/5 Continental Tournaments (2035 Gold Cup, 2036 Copa America)
0/1 World Tournament

TOTAL: 10/32

Gregg88 · January 7

Man Utd & England

Just realised I haven't updated since Marseille & Ivory Coast....

Well, as you may have seen, the world cup didn't go to plan & Ivory Coast sacked me.

After that World cup ended, the normal mass exodus of managers occured, to which I applied for about 10 jobs. Only 4 came back with offers though, luckily England were one of them.

Fats forward 2 years and I won the Nations league and Euro 2032! I've very much got an aging squad now, so I need to introduce younger players in time for the World Cup 2034.

After Marseille, I actually joined Bilbao for half a season. Not realising that they have the Basque region transfer law. That massively limited me in the transfer market obviously, so I quit at the end of the seaon after guiding them a 3rd place finish.

Man Utd were searching for a manager, alongside Arsenal so naturaly I applied for both and Arsenal didn't want to know. More fool them!!

I've just completed my first season with Man Utd and won the league and FA Cup. They had finished 8th the previous season, so no european football but a transfer kitty of £200m+ was always going to benefit me.

I love a good clear out at a new team, this one didnt disappoint!

Now i'm into the second season with Champions League football, I think I should be able to go far. Maybe asking a lot to win it first time round, but we'll see!

Challenge progress.....

The Art of Drowning · January 7

So I've been playing this challenge for a little while now without providing any updates, so here goes a very brief update:

23/24 - Black Leopards

Got a job in the 2nd tier of South Africa at Black Leopards, managed to keep them in the league before working on a complete rebuild for the new season.

24/25 - Black Leopards/Cape Town Spurs

The rebuild went well and we looked very capable of getting promotion, the start of the season was a bit inconsistent but then we won loads in a row but somehow the team in front of us just wouldn't slow down either. With about 8 games to go I decided to apply for the vacant managerial position at Cape Town Spurs, they were bottom of the league but I felt they had better finances to support a challenge for the honours needed. I realised after getting the job that they actually won the league the season before so it was a real fall from grace for them, we were still in the Champions League when I took over although we immediately lost our games there to see us knocked out, however I did keep us up.

25/26 - Cape Town Spurs

A big rebuild saw us build a squad capable of challenging for the title, however we unfortunately fell short by just one point. I also sacrificed all of the cups to focus on the title challenge so still had all of the competitions to play for to complete Africa.

26/27 Cape Town Spurs

I really fancied the Golden Arrows job as they had a Korean Tycoon running the club, however they rejected me. So I focused on Cape Town and built a really impressive squad full of African Talent, our Ivorian regen Centre Back Traore in particular will go on to be a superstar. We won the Telkom Knock Out, The DSTV Premiership, The MTN 8 and finally the Champions League to complete Africa before resigning.

2027 Jeju United

Got a job in Korea with a tycoon owner, they didn't have a great squad and with 10 games remaining I couldn't get them into the Champions League places

2028 Jeju United

Time to spend some of that tycoon money! We spent £29m on the best young Korean talent in addition to some good foreign players (a class Ivorian Striker now at Dortmund the highlight). I think we signed about 30 players with the oldest player in the side 21 years old We won the league but were knocked out of the cup in the Semi Final

2029 Jeju United

Spent another £43m which is silly money in Korea Signed our former Cape Town Centre Back Traore from Saudi Arabia for £26m and we were able to win the league and cup as well as remaining in the Champions League. Also got the job as manager of Nigeria, our opening 2 friendlies were a defeat to Venezuela and a last minute winner against UAE which did not bode well.

2030 Jeju United / Nigeria

Completed Asia by winning the Asian Champions League and resigned with the team sitting top of the league again. Qualified through our World Cup group by beating USA and Syria and then losing 3-2 to Ukraine before being immediately knocked out by Austria 2-1 in the next round. Annoyingly Victor Osimhen won't reconsider retirement atm despite only being 31.

2030/31 Deportivo Guadalajara / Nigeria

I have been rejected by a lot of clubs before ending up here and this may be a bit of a challenge, the side can only sign Mexicans and none of the good ones are willing to join a side not in the Champions League. However there is a lot of talent in the youth sides who I'll immediately be promoting, we won't win anything this year but I'm hoping giving them game time this year will mean they will grow into great players in the next couple of years. So far we've drawn 3 and won one and sit 5th in the Torneo Apetura. With Nigeria in the AFCON qualifiers we have beaten The Gambia and Tunisia in the group stage so far.

Edited January 7 by The Art of Drowning

Gammonds · January 7

Season 2031 – SEP / Ivory Coast

Well, this one did not go to plan.

At the end of last year, I had thought SEP was a good goalkeeper and a few squad tweaks away from a good shot at the Brazilian league title. So, in January I bought a young Argentine keeper who ended up emerging as his national team’s backup keeper over the course of the year. A CB and RB from a relegated Brazilian team provided needed rotation options on the back line. Last year’s backup keeper ended up staying even though I wasn’t a fan at all – I just didn’t have another solid backup option handy and wasn’t interested in paying a transfer fee for one when I had several prospects coming through the youth ranks that looked to be maybe a year away from ready. I did eventually unload him midseason after he complained about his playing time despite being a backup (not cup GK) with 10 or so appearances already. I brought in one more player as the transfer window closed to start the season in April – a very physical striker who works well as a rotation option and change of pace from my far more technical first choice. All 4 of the new arrivals worked as intended over the course of the year.

The (pre) season started well enough. We coasted through the extended preseason tournament that is the Brazilian state championships and won the South American Recopa to start our season with 2 (largely irrelevant) trophies. As a bit of an aside, my best CB took a shine to an offer from England, and decided he wanted to leave because they could offer him a better chance at trophies. Last year’s Libertadores win apparently didn’t move the needle for him, but a promise to win a domestic cup did – and the Sao Paulo State Championship satisfied him. Go figure.

Last season I thought SEP would live and die by how well the midfield ticked, and still think this season bore that out. I lost my best DM to a series of injuries as the actual regular season began, and that hurt more than I had expected. April and May looked alright as we beat up on mostly second-rate opponents, but the warning signs were there in a couple of less than stellar results in the league and a very frustrating 4^th round exit from the Brazilian Cup to last season’s arch nemesis, INT. That’s the first of the trophies I was looking for this season missed.

The wheels pretty nearly came off in June with 2 wins, 2 losses, and 4 draws in the league. Only 2 losses isn’t bad if you’re looking for mid to upper table, but only 2 wins doesn’t cut it at all if you have ambitions of actually winning the thing. By the end of the month we’d slid towards mid-table, but fortunately still had a couple of games in hand. A couple of things worked in my favor at the start of July – we got that critically important DM back from injury, and the midseason transfer window opened. In came an Argentine LB late of Arsenal on a free, and far more importantly an Argentine CM wonderkid with a very affordable release clause from Newell’s. I bought him because the opportunity was too good to pass up but thought I might have trouble making my 2 attack-minded #8’s work well in a stable midfield, but it went wonderfully.

Corner turned, we went on an absolutely stellar run – 18 wins and a draw across July – September. As this happened it still looked like INT were favorites to defend their league title. When we met them in August we had the opportunity to seize control from them, and did in a narrow and rather fortunate 4-3 win.

Spoiler

The run:

INT never looked likely to really challenge after that point. What I hadn’t quite picked up on at the time was how badly they were hurt in the midseason transfer window – they had 3 of the 4 highest value outbound transfers in the window, and financial firepower notwithstanding don’t seem to have been able to replace those players adequately. VDG on the other hand did quite well in the later portion of the campaign, and when we met them in October looked to be the only real challenger left for the title. A win for us would have left us with a nearly unassailable advantage.

Spoiler

We lost, and our lead was 2 points with 6 matches to play. We can hold that, right? We dropped a total of 4 points in those 6 matches – a loss where the only goal scored was an opposition penalty, and this disasterclass of a draw:

Spoiler

My first choice GK was away in international duty with Argentina. That’s youth team backups (both very good prospects, mostly able to deputize at this level) getting injured 4 minutes apart, and the all important goal as the last action of the match from a free kick while an attacking midfielder looks like a training dummy with gloves on.

We finished the season with 83 points, enough for the league title 8 of the last 10 seasons if I’m not mistaken. VDG had 86. The absolute cherry on top of this domestic season? Losing the Libertadores final on penalties a week after the end of the league season to none other than VDG. The season's overall results:

Spoiler

At least there’s a promising opportunity with Ivory Coast in AfCON right?

2 World Cup qualifiers a week before the tournament made for a decent tune-up for a side favored to win. 3 wins from 3 in the group stage was no less than expected – Cape Verde and Sierra Leone were not meaningful opposition, and Tunisia didn’t fare all that well either. Benin fell 9-2 in the second round, and the 2 conceded were poor enough to prompt me to change GKs. In hindsight, that probably didn’t hurt, but it didn’t help either. We limped to an embarrassing 1-0 defeat against Mali in the quarters, which was really not good enough at all.

Spoiler

I resigned the Ivory Coast job as soon as I did the post match press conference. Even if I’d been able to hold on, that’s a team that was in win now mode and will need a serious rebuild in the near future as the golden generation ages out. I’ve stayed on at SEP as of mid-December in game, but am not sure what I want to do there. On the one hand, it’s still a very good team and just put on a performance that would have won the league most years. I’ll probably need a refresh on the wings for the next season, but shouldn’t be losing too many key players. On the other hand, a 16-ish game preseason tournament that isn’t and a league that doesn’t take the international breaks makes for a hell of a grind and it might be a good idea to bounce.

Progress: (4/32)

Spoiler

goonergez · January 8

Career Update: 2039

After clinching both the Brazilian League title and the Copa Libertadores crowns last season I headed into a new campaign with the sole aim of gunning for the elusive domestic cup. I didn’t expect to be with the club for the entire season though as I looked to get out of Brazil and head to Europe.

The season started well enough as we clinched more silverware. We beat Flamengo to lift the Brazilian Super Cup before then defeating Corinthians over two legs to lift the South American Super Cup as well. We failed to make it a hat trick though as we fell short in the São Paulo State Championship this time, losing to Santos on penalties in the semi finals.

We began our First Division defence in fine form before I suffered a blow that drew me to leaving the club. We drew 1-1 at home with Flamengo in the Brazilian Cup before being blown away 0-3 in the second leg. As the only competition left for me to win here I felt it was the perfect time to walk away.

I handed in my resignation in April and would remain unemployed until December waiting for a European club to come calling.

It would take me a little over eight months before Portuguese side Sporting Lisbon would offer me the job to take charge. Sat 3rd in the league and just four points off of the leaders this was an opportunity I couldn’t turn down. On top of that the club were still in both domestic cup competitions and the Europa League. I have been handed a £50,000,000 transfer budget too, and with the window about to open it gives me plenty of opportunity to improve the squad. It doesn’t appear anything drastic is needed but I won’t know until I’ve been in charge for a few games. It’s going to be a tough challenge to overthrow Benfica and FC Porto but I’m confident I can make my first adventure in Europe into a successful one.

Season	Team			Position	Notes & Achievements
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24 Pretoria Callies	5th		(hired in 10th place)
2024/25 Pretoria Callies	1st(C)
2025/26 Cape Town City		12th		(hired in 11th place)
2026/27 Cape Town City		1st (C)		SA Premiership winners
2027/28 Cape Town City		3rd		SA Knockout Cup & African Champions League winners	
2028/29 Cape Town City		12th		(resigned in october)
2030	Ulsan Hyundai		3rd		Asian Champions League winners
2031	New York City FC	10th
2032	New York City FC	7th
2033	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield & MLS Eastern Conference winners
2034	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield, MLS Eastern Conference and Champions League winners
2035	-
2036	Palmeiras		4th		(hired in 7th)
2037	Palmeiras		4th		Sao Paulo State winners
2038	Palmeiras		1st (C)		First Division, Sao Paulo State & Copa Libertadores winners
2039	Palmeiras		-		South American Super Cup & Brazilian Super Cup winners
2039/40	Sporting Lisbon		tbc		(hired in 3rd)


Challenge Progress

Club

3/10 Domestic Leagues (26/27 SA Premiership, 2033 MLS Cup, 2038 Brazilian First Division)
1/10 Domestic Cups (27/28 SA Knockout Cup)
4/5 Continental Championships (27/28 African Champions League, 2031 Asian Champions League, 2034 NA Champions League, 2038 Copa Libertadores)
0/1 Club World Championship

International

2/5 Continental Tournaments (2035 Gold Cup, 2036 Copa America)
0/1 World Tournament

TOTAL: 10/32

vikeologist · January 8

16 minutes ago, goonergez said:

Season	Team			Position	Notes & Achievements
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24 Pretoria Callies	5th		(hired in 10th place)
2024/25 Pretoria Callies	1st(C)
2025/26 Cape Town City		12th		(hired in 11th place)
2026/27 Cape Town City		1st (C)		SA Premiership winners
2027/28 Cape Town City		3rd		SA Knockout Cup & African Champions League winners	
2028/29 Cape Town City		12th		(resigned in october)
2030	Ulsan Hyundai		3rd		Asian Champions League winners
2031	New York City FC	10th
2032	New York City FC	7th
2033	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield & MLS Eastern Conference winners
2034	New York City FC	1st (C)		MLS Cup, Supporters Shield, MLS Eastern Conference and Champions League winners
2035	-
2036	Palmeiras		4th		(hired in 7th)
2037	Palmeiras		4th		Sao Paulo State winners
2038	Palmeiras		1st (C)		First Division, Sao Paulo State & Copa Libertadores winners
2039	Palmeiras		-		South American Super Cup & Brazilian Super Cup winners
2039/40	Sporting Lisbon		tbc		(hired in 3rd)


Challenge Progress

Club

3/10 Domestic Leagues (26/27 SA Premiership, 2033 MLS Cup, 2038 Brazilian First Division)
1/10 Domestic Cups (27/28 SA Knockout Cup)
4/5 Continental Championships (27/28 African Champions League, 2031 Asian Champions League, 2034 NA Champions League, 2038 Copa Libertadores)
0/1 Club World Championship

International

2/5 Continental Tournaments (2035 Gold Cup, 2036 Copa America)
0/1 World Tournament

TOTAL: 10/32

Welcome back to the leaderboard.

AndreV1313 · January 8

SEASON 2030/2031 PART 2

After having closed our cycle in Australia, we fly to America, where we take over the leadership of Inter Miami, a team of high quality which, however, has failed to capitalise in recent seasons.

MLS

Obviously, we arrive in the United States in the middle of the season since in the States the start is in January. We start immediately with a crazy victory against Philadelphia, winning 4-3 after going down 3-0. In five months at the helm of Inter Miami we only managed four defeats, including just two in the regular season. From fourth place which was the team when I arrived, we finish the season in first place in the eastern conference, plus three from second, and we score less points, just one less, than only one team Austin FC.

In the playoffs, the team that scares us the most is the one we face in the first round, with a Columbus team that, after losing the first round, wins the return and forces us to play the play-off, which we easily win. In the semifinals we literally destroyed Cincinnati, smashing them with a net 7-0. The final of the eastern conference playoffs we won by a narrow margin, 1-0, thanks to the goal of ex-Venice player Gianluca Busio.

The final against the winner of the western conference was decided in extra time, where we triumphed over Austin FC, winning 2-1 thanks to the decisive goal by Urbina, a young outside player from the Inter Miami youth team.

LEAGUES CUP

In the national cup we don't have a chance to perform as Inter Miami was eliminated before my arrival, but in the continental cup we achieve another joy, winning the Leagues Cup. After coming through the group as runners-up, with all three teams tied but going ahead thanks to a better goal difference than Nashville, we beat Colorado in the western quarter-finals on penalty kicks. In the semifinals we beat the Mexicans of Chivas, winning 4-1. The final, surprisingly, was against Real Salt Lake, whom we beat 2-0 thanks to goals from Marinho and Morales. We thus reached the playoffs, where our first rival was Queretaro, whom we beat 2-1. We then reached the final, against the fearsome Pumas, who surprisingly, given the unfavourable odds, we beat 4-2.

Season     Team             Position  Notes and Achievements
2023/24    Black Leopards   1st       Motsepe Foundation Championship winner, promotion to DStv Premiership
2024/25   Supersport United 4th       Nedbank Cup winner
2025/26   Supersport United 4th       Telkom Knockout Cup, Nedbank Cup and CAF Confederation Cup winner 
2026/27   Supersport United 1st       DStv Premiership winner
2027/28   Supersport United 2nd       CAF Champions League winner
2028/29   Sydney FC         4th/2nd 
2029/30   Sydney FC         2nd/1st   Australia Cup and Isuzu UTE-A League winner 
2030/31(1) Sydney FC        1st/1st   Isuzu UTE-A League and ACF Champions League winner
2030/31(2) Inter Miami      1st       MLS and Leagues Cup winner

Challenge Progress

Club

3/10 top domestic leagues (DStv Premiership 2026/27; Isuzu UTE-A League 2029/30; MLS 2030/31)

2/10 domestic cups (Nedbank Cup 2024/25; Australia Cup 2029/30)

2/5 club continental championships (CAF Champions League 2027/28; ACF Champions League 2030/31)

0/1 club world championship

International

0/5 continental tournaments ()

0/1 world tournaments ()

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