A Capital Idea: Ending Regional Dominance in European Football - Hibernian

[shaunvamos]

While reading Soccernomics for the first time over the last few weeks (what an excellent book), it gave me a couple of ideas for my next long term (hopefully) FM save. 

Especially the chapter on city sizes and league/continental championships. In modern times, you'd think the capital cities, generally the cities with the largest populations and resources, would also have their success reflected within a football context, right?

Wrong.

Potential reasons suggested for this included less of a need for capital cities to "prove themselves" in a sporting capacity, given that they are the source of so much more. This is especially true given the heavy industrial history of a lot of historically strong football clubs (think towns like Manchester, Liverpool, Dortmund, Munich, Turin and Barcelona). I was surprised by how Europe-wide regional dominance was - below is a table showing the number of league titles capital cities have won since the renaming of the Champions League (and coincidentally the Premier League era too).

 

 

Only 10 of the 34 playable nations in FM have had their capital cities win more than half of their league titles since 1992-93. Unsurprisingly (except for Denmark & the Irelands) most of these countries are in Eastern Europe with a history of communist/fascist regimes, involving the collectivisation/centralisation of resources, which strengthened their capital city teams indirectly as a result. 

But the time for capital cities consistently underperforming is at an end. 

 

Starting at the top of this list, the goals for this save are as follows:

1. Take charge of the capital city club with the highest reputation. The club must not have won the league since 1992-93. If the managing nation has won a Champions League, the highest rep capital club that hasn't won a Champions League becomes eligible. The only exception to this is if the capital city is the club with the nation's highest reputation, they are ineligible. This means that Atletico Madrid, Lazio and Arsenal are eligible at the start of the save, but Benfica & PSG are not.

2. Win the league.

3. If a nation has won a Champions League, win a Champions League.

4. Become the most reputable club in the country.

5. Consider the job done in that country, and move onto the next nation.

 

Simple, right?

 

Recruitment

 

Once again drawn from concepts I read in Soccernomics, the recruitment policy will follow these rules.

1. Only sign players between the ages of 20 and 22. This doesn't mean I will only ask my scouts to look for players between these ages - I'd shortlist a 17 year old, monitor them for 3 seasons before deciding to sign them. My scouts would more than likely know how good a player is going to be when they hit that age as well.

2. Buy players for the first team as priority, but if no one is available to improve the first team then find cheap backups who can develop, also between ages 20-22. That way when first team players inevitably leave, we are replacing them before they even leave in theory. The academy players will mostly be used for development loans or backup the backups, and maybe a few of them can come good eventually. I'll start off by looking to improve our weakest position each transfer window, and then when that is strengthened move on to the next one.

3. Sell players if they're offered a fee more than what the market deems they're worth. This will be hard for me as I tend to get attached to players, but it's necessary for progression.

4. When replacing first team players sold, always buy a replacement worth less than the fee you received. This will allow me to allocate resources elsewhere when buying players, or save for facility upgrades. 

5. Combine scout opinion with analytical tools I created. This is in the form of formulas I created years ago, but instead of replacing scouting opinion I'm making it feel more realistic i.e. scouts give me their opinion and I use analytics to make the final decision from those recommendations.

 

So, on to the first nation. There are 4 where no capital city has won the title in the CL/EPL era. Do I start big, and overthrow Bayern? Do I attempt to remove the stranglehold Glasgow has had on Scotland? Turkey is an interesting option, given that there are three superpowers from Istanbul to unseat. Or I do go in with absolutely no qualifications or experience in Wales, where success will make no waves in the grand scheme of things?

 

Decisions, decisions.....  

Edited March 30 by shaunvamos

[shaunvamos]

I decided to start in Germany, because I wanted to get the opportunity to sign good real players now, something I haven't really done on FM.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was a tossup between Union and Hertha, as they have the same reputation in terms of stars. Hertha has better facilities, but they start in a lower division having just been relegated, with the expectation to go straight back up. Union, on the other hand only want a top half finish and get Champions League football this season. So that's who I went with.

 

 

 

 

 

I'll be operating with a pretty rigid squad of 22, with reliance on youth players to fill in as depth where needed. Looks to be a pretty strong squad at the moment, but strengthening the attack will need to be my first priority I think.

 

 

[Sahaj Oberoi]

Oh yes, welcome back! Looking forward to this save.

[Punch]

Looks like a fun idea. Good luck!

[shaunvamos]

Preseason/August 2023

 

Losses

 

 

I said I was going to strengthen our attack, so of course the first thing I did was sell our best striker  But when Saudi Arabia comes calling, I can put that money to better use. Another starter to leave was CB Robin Knoche, who joins Becker at Al Shabab. The rest to leave didn't have a place in the squad or sent on development loans.

 

Gains

 

I waited until deadline day just so our scouting shortlist could populate with enough players, and I'm pretty happy with who I brought in. Tarore got signed by Sheffield United in real life, but I got in first this time. Is he better than Becker? No, but he should be an absolute steal at 775k. Spent a few more $ to bring in WB Malheiro, who had interest from Liverpool and Tottenham, and broke the team transfer record to bring in Argentinian international AM Thiago Almada from the MLS. Unfortunately I couldn't find any CBs, so the team might be a bit mad that I didn't address their lack of depth concerns.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's been a strong start to life in Berlin, winning our first two games. We are yet to meet any of the bigger teams though, but I'm still happy so far.

 

 

 

 

 

[shaunvamos]

1 hour ago, Punch said:

Looks like a fun idea. Good luck!

 

3 hours ago, Sahajpal Oberoi said:

Oh yes, welcome back! Looking forward to this save.

Thanks guys  

[shaunvamos]

September 2023

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The honeymoon period is over, but we're still sitting 6th. I think we'll finish 4th in the Champions League too, because Braga was our key to 3rd place.

[Vakama2619]

Welcome back, pretty excited to see how this goes, will you be starting a new save with every nation or is it gonna continue with the same save?

[shaunvamos]

October 2023

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I think we've settled into a decent rhythm in the league now, especially with that away win over Dortmund. Our loss to Bremen isn't worrying, we went down to 10 men and they scored 3 in the last 10 minutes. 

[Cheez3y]

Pretty amazing idea.

Will follow.

[shaunvamos]

47 minutes ago, Vakama2619 said:

Welcome back, pretty excited to see how this goes, will you be starting a new save with every nation or is it gonna continue with the same save?

Thanks! I'll continue on with the save, make things a bit more dynamic - who knows, Arsenal or Tottenham could win the CL and I'd have to go with Crystal Palace or Fulham!

[shaunvamos]

11 minutes ago, Cheez3y said:

Pretty amazing idea.

Will follow.

Thanks mate  

[Punch]

13 hours ago, shaunvamos said:

 

 

This tactic looks really cool. Do you have any special instructions set for individual positions?

[shaunvamos]

November 2023

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A middling month sees us drop out of the top 6, but we've had a few injuries that's beginning to test our depth.

[shaunvamos]

14 hours ago, Punch said:

 

This tactic looks really cool. Do you have any special instructions set for individual positions?

Thanks! It's from one of my old coaches, the way he explained it meant I was able to replicate it as close as I could in the game. The only instructions I have are for the WBs to stay wider and the DMs to take more risks

[shaunvamos]

December 2023

 

 

 

 

 

Oh boy, it's not looking good. At least we snuck into 3rd place in our CL group on goal difference, and now we play Qarabag in the Europa League, a very winnable tie. Hopefully. Time to see where we can upgrade for the January window!

[shaunvamos]

January 2024

 

Gains

 

 

We pretty much use the rest of our transfer budget this January, and we've made some good purchases in my opinion. I think the Mannsverk signing is a steal, especially given that he's demanded a 22M release clause.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We scrape a couple of results, but a win's a win. We're sitting 10th, which is where we rank in total payroll. According to the authors of Soccernomics payroll is pretty indicative of where you should finish, so at least we aren't underperforming!

[shaunvamos]

February 2024

 

 

 

 

 

We won our Europa League knockout games, but they were the only wins this month. Very disappointing loss to Heidenheim, but 10th place is still up for grabs.

[shaunvamos]

March 2024

 

 

 

 

 

We're through to the quarter finals of the Europa League which is excellent, where we play another Lisbon team in Benfica. I also think 10th is now out of the question, meaning we've underperformed. But I think I need at least another season to sort the side out and build the squad the way I want to. Especially once the scouts keep populating my analytics shortlist.

[shaunvamos]

2024 Youth Intake

 

 

 

 

 

 

We get an excellent opening intake with 4 players considered promising!

 

 

 

Marcel Buchholz  -  Christoph Breuer  -  Benjamin Lecoq  -  Christian Lanzinger

[shaunvamos]

April 2024

 

 

 

 

 

Yeah, I'm just trying to hold on until the end of the season.

[shaunvamos]

May 2024

 

 

 

 

My job is safe(ish), but I need to be better next season. At least they're doing better than the actual Union team this season  

 

 

Best XI

 

 

 

Jérôme Roussillon  -  Frederik Rønnow  -  Sivert Mannsverk

 

No real standouts this season for obvious reasons, but at least one of the new signings made the cut.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next Season

 

Obviously the goal next year is to finish higher, and I think with a few decent signings we'll do that. The number of players our scouts found has more than doubled since January, so I'm excited to see who we can pick up!

 

Progress

 

[shaunvamos]

2024 Summer Transfer Window

 

 

 

We cut a bit of dead weight, as well as our former starting GK (Ronnow), CB (Doekhi) & DM (Khedira). So who were we able to bring in?

 

 

 

 

 

A striker, CB (for 6m upfront and the rest on possible future payments, so we technically spent less on Okoli than we received for Doekhi) and a GK. I almost signed Schjelderup, finally a player that I knew, but the scouts said he had adaptability problems so I walked away from the contract table. How rude.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apparently, lots of goals now get scored when we play  The big loss to Dortmund was due to our keeper getting injured, not having a backup, and our CB conceded the last 4 goals.

The media have us finishing 12th, and we have the 14th highest payroll. So maybe I'd be happy with 13th?

[shaunvamos]

September 2024

 

 

 

 

 

Brilliant, normality seems to have resumed 

[shaunvamos]

October 2024

 

 

 

 

 

Have we turned things around? Probably not, but those 3 home wins help us out a lot.

 

 

 

 

 

This makes me feel better though!

 

[shaunvamos]

November 2024

 

 

 

 

A tough month, but very happy to draw against Bayern despite a red card. 

[shaunvamos]

December 2024

 

 

 

 

 

We end the year with an excellent run of wins against teams we were expected to beat, especially against our rivals Hertha.

[shaunvamos]

January 2025

 

Losses

 

A huge sale this January, as starting LWB Josip Juranovic departs for big money. We unfortunately couldn't find someone to replace him, but we had a decent backup to hold the fort until next season.

 

 

 

Gains

 

 

 

We strengthen our attack and defensive midfield, with perennial wonderkid Youssoufa Moukoko on loan and a Danish wonderkid with bucketloads of potenial.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Unfortunately, the new signings haven't helped yet as we get off to an awful start in the new year.

[shaunvamos]

February 2025

 

 

 

 

 

Business has picked up here, as we brushed aside the flogging by Dortmund to go unbeaten the rest of the month, including a win over Schalke to advance to the semis of the German Cup. There's a lot of ground to make up though if we want to crack the top 10.

[shaunvamos]

2025 Youth Intake

 

 

 

İsmail Kılıç  -  Drilon Uka  -  Felix Altmann

 

An intake that wasn't as good as our first one, but how cool are some of these nationalities? Two Kosovans and a player born in Lebanon! 

[shaunvamos]

March 2025

 

 

 

 

The good news: we are within range of the top 10. The bad news: We have Bayern twice and a home game against Leverkusen. Don't think the atmosphere will handle the hit  

[shaunvamos]

April 2025

 

 

 

 

 

Losses to Bayern aside, we did pretty well this month! We have Hertha, Koln and Leipzig left, so hopefully we can stay 11th.

[shaunvamos]

 

 

 

 

 

 

We had a strong end to the season, which makes me feel good about our chances heading into next season with this kind of momentum.

 

 

 

Best XI

 

 

 

Pedro Malheiro  -  Mikkel Kaufmann  -  Thiago Almada

 

We get two players over 7.00! Only three players in the XI were here before I arrived too, the transition is nearly complete.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next Season

 

I'm trying to give myself a kind of 5 year plan, where in 5 seasons I'll be in a position where the club is successful. I want to be able to start to see these changes around season 3, and the board think so too. They want Europa Conference League next season. I think it's possible, but unlikely. We'll just have to see who we can sign. We're certainly trending upwards though!

 

 

Progress

 

 

[shaunvamos]

2025 Summer Transfer Period

 

 

Some pretty big names moved this preseason, the most noteworthy of which is Mannsverk to PSG. So many clubs hit his release clause, and now he's off to be a squad player. Still, can't complain about 19M in profit. We also move Baldanzi on for 2.5M profit, and Diogo Leite leaves for Dortmund on deadline day. I wasn't too bothered about them, they'd been demoted to the bench and needed to capitalise on their value. The biggest loss in terms of positional need was LWB Roussillon, but he was old and was going to be replaced this season anyway. But by who?

 

 

 

 

I didn't actually spend 88M, most of it was back-ended. I wish there was a way to show that in this screen, but anyway. At the beginning of the transfer period there were no great buys at LWB, so I turned to Abakar Sylla, a left footed CB that had decent WB attributes. Once we got in the big money for Mannsverk though I went looking again, and found an actual WB in Elias Jelert, and he looks incredible. Our starting wing backs are going to be scary this season if they stay injury free. I didn't find a suitable replacement for Mannsverk, but bringing in Ivorian wonderkid CB Ousmane Diomande from Portugal will either make our season or ruin us financially. I had to add all sorts of ridiculous incentives in his contract to get him to sign, so here's hoping.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We pretty much had the perfect preseason, so you can imagine my disbelief when we lost our Bundesliga opener to Augsburg. But we went and flogged Leverkusen before drawing away to Gladbach, so hoped are still high. Despite our big spending this window we're still 12th in the total payroll, and the media thinks we should be 11th. The board want European qualification, and I think we need it otherwise I'll have a lot to answer for with all these big money signings.

[shaunvamos]

September 2025

 

 

 

 

 

A disappointing month, but at least we beat Mainz to end the month.

[shaunvamos]

October 2025

 

 

 

 

 

A very good month, especially the draw with Bayern where we out xG'd them. That seemed to take a lot out of us though as we are knocked out of the cup and lost to Frankfurt.

[shaunvamos]

November 2025

 

 

 

 

 

Mixed again from us, but that big win over Stuttgart hopefully helps our momentum. We're essentially one win away from being 7th.

[shaunvamos]

December 2025

 

 

 

 

 

Consistently inconsistent seems to be the name of the game for us here, but all it will take is a couple of good results and we'll go shooting up that table.

[shaunvamos]

January 2026

 

 

 

 

 

No movements in our out this January, and it looks like we didn't need it as we start the year with 3 wins from our first 4. We jumped into 6th before going a game behind, and any result against Freiburg will put us at least equal 5th.

[shaunvamos]

February 2026

 

 

 

 

 

Another strong month, and we shoot up to 6th. It's all a bit of a cluster for that final Champions League spot.

[shaunvamos]

March 2026

 

 

 

 

 

A superb month, and we beat Bayern in Munich! Things really are looking up.

[shaunvamos]

April 2026

 

 

 

 

 

We split results this month, and the final Champions League spot comes down to the wire. I'm not sure I'd prefer it at this stage, I reckon a strong Europa League run would do wonders. But let's see what happens.

[shaunvamos]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I said I wanted Europa League, and my players took it personally as we sat 3rd before the final game  But we ended up choking against Hoffenheim, so we go into the Europa League for next season anyway  

 

 

Best XI

 

 

 

Pedro Malheiro  -  William Clem  -  Elias Jelert

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next Season

 

It's taken 3 seasons to put this club on an upward trend, which is exactly where I wanted to be at this stage of the save. Another season will give the academy players time to bridge the gap and help our depth. We'll see if we can make any improvements to the first team, and it's not going to be long before the first newgens start to pop up on the shortlist. There are a few that look really good, but we just have to hope no one else notices  

 

 

 

Progress

 

 

[shaunvamos]

2026 Summer Transfer Window

 

 

 

A huge window for departures, as we lose our star DM Clem due to a release clause, starting CB Okoli, new starter and former backup CB Jaeckel, starting CAM Almada and our other starting CB Amione. In total, we made more than double than what we paid for them, which went towards strengthening an alarmingly weak team due to these losses.

 

 

 

 

 

Don't let the huge number fool you - we only spent about 25% of this up front. The instalments are tomorrow's problem, and hopefully by then the results will pay for it. The two loanees were brought in to replace Clem and Almada respectively, and then we went crazy on deadline day. We brought in a new LWB (Kerkez), ST (Bazdar), CAM (Moleiro), GK (Restes) and CB (Quintana). Quintana becomes our first newgen purchase, and he looks like he has plenty of room to grow while also being first team ready.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Despite all this spending we still have 46M left  We'll just ignore the 132M in transfer debt though.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Despite having only two of our new signings we've gotten off to a good start in the league, going 2 for 3.

 

 

 

 

 

We get a pretty good draw here too, I'd expect to qualify from this.

[shaunvamos]

September 2026

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

What a start to the season! I think all these new purchases are contributing massively. It's only early days yet, but we look great so far.

[shaunvamos]

October 2026

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And just like that, reality hits  They were all away games, but we really should be beating Legia.

[shaunvamos]

November 2026

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back to winning ways this month, which saw us go top of the Bundesliga briefly before Bayern resumed normal service. But with our game in hand we have a chance to go top again. We also get strong results in Europe, and will probably finish in the top 8.

[shaunvamos]

December 2026

 

 

 

 

 

I feel like the Union fans would've sacrificed our good form this season if it meant beating Hertha  But we're sitting pretty heading into the second half of the season.

[shaunvamos]

January 2027

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

No transfer action and an FMing against Gladbach costs us an unbeaten run this month, but we seem to have carved a niche in 2nd place, with a healthyish gap provided we win our game in hand. It's also cool to see teams like APOEL and Astana qualify for the next stage of the Europa League too! 

[shaunvamos]

February 2027

 

 

 

 

 

A slight slip up at home to Hamburg, and it wasn't for that we would be top at the end of the month. Bayern seem to be slipping up, but can we stay consistent enough to catch them?

 

 

 

 

 

We get Rangers in the Europa League. It's not the most difficult tie, but they're still going to be a challenge.