Just as flight sim fanatics want the virtual Cessna 172 to fly exactly like the real Cessna 172, FM managers want their version of Yeovil Town to look and play like Yeovil Town. 20m copies have been sold so far on PC, Mac, and smartphones, and most of the ardent fans are football obsessives who demand accuracy. Every aspect of the manager’s role from scouting new players, to training, tactics and even providing emotional support to players, is part of the experience.
Originally named Championship Manager and first launched in 1992, the Football Manager series provides a painstakingly detailed simulation of club management.
The big question of course, is how browsing a computer game can compete with having experienced staff sniffing out new talent? And the answer is, well, this is no ordinary computer game. “The Sports Interactive database is a highly accurate and valuable resource that will further enhance the recruitment services that we provide” “Prozone Recruiter has been built to supplement the intuition of scouts and coaches by delivering detailed performance information on over 80,000 players worldwide,” says Prozone’s CEO, Thomas Schmider.
