The Researcher Interviews

[Neil Brock]

Have you ever wondered where the player attributes, club data and stadium information in Football Manager come from? We are assisted by more than 1,000 researchers across the world who help put our database together but that wasn’t always the case. The research team started out quite small in the mid-1990s but has expanded almost exponentially since then. 

Our researchers are fans of the series, just like us, and many of them took on their roles because they were passionate about their clubs, domestic leagues and national football setups and they wanted to ensure they were represented accurately in the game. 

Indeed, many of those who have worked as researchers for Football Manager have moved into jobs in the footballing world as a result of their knowledge and commitment, so it can be a pathway to the job of your dreams. 

Below are five interviews conducted with some of our Head Researchers, giving you an insight into how they scout, rate and submit all the many different things you see in game.

Argentina Head Researcher Interview
Facundo Delgado is our Argentine head researcher, who has grown the role over the years to the point where he now oversees the efforts of a team of 60 scouts, as well as guiding an online community of roughly 13,000 fans.

Portugal Head Researchers Interview
Carlos Bessa and Bruno Luis have been contributing to our vast research team for a combined 16 years. 

Scotland Head Researcher Interview
Stuart Milne is our Scottish head researcher and he has been involved with FM for more than two decades, starting as an assistant researcher in 1997 before taking up his current role in 2000.

South Africa Head Researcher Interview
Rob Delport is our South African head researcher and he has been involved with FM for about a decade, attending hundreds of games and ensuring the maintenance of the data for the entire country, including that of the national team.

Switzerland Head Researcher Interview
Oliver Zesiger is our Swiss head researcher and he has been involved with FM for more than a decade. 

[bigbeezer]

What websites to the scouts etc use to determine team formations and line ups?

thanks

[pixelatedsuits]

Loved hearing the different challenges and perspectives of the sport that draws all the world together. Thanks for sharing.

[Brentford Alan]

On 23/10/2022 at 20:44, bigbeezer said:

What websites to the scouts etc use to determine team formations and line ups?

thanks

We go to the games! Each English team,  for example, has a volunteer researcher dedicated to them who is usually a season ticket holding fan and watches the team home and away as much as possible.

[PowerBug]

Brilliant interviews! I especially like the pretty consistent responses about Mental attributes being toughest to rate