The list of fixes for Content Update 1 for Football Manager 26 is long. Nevertheless, many fans feel that it lacks significant impact. The name in particular has been criticized—there is still discontent among the fan base.
“We need to talk about FM26”: With these words, Tery Whenett from FM.Zweierkette opens his latest YouTube video. What doesn’t sound good at the beginning doesn’t get any more positive as the video progresses. The FM expert is irritated by Content Update 1, which developer Sports Interactive released for Football Manager on Monday.
“It’s not even about the quality of the update. Because, as far as I can tell, it’s a good update,” says Whenett. For example, he welcomes the reintroduction of chants, the free assignment of attribute colors, and the option to arrange U-19 test matches. So what is bothering the content creator so much? The naming.
Hopes for “a whole new gaming experience”
“This is never going to be Content Update 1,” says Whenett. He had hoped for “a whole new gaming experience” from a patch with that name. The return of chants is already “the main feature. Something that has been ported unchanged from FM24 to FM26. “ The streamer’s big problem: ”Communication – again.”
What may seem petty at first glance is quite understandable in light of recent events. Transparent communication with the fan base was once Sports Interactive’s great trump card. Until, around the time FM25 was canceled, there was suddenly months of radio silence from the developer. The community’s trust was shaken for good.
Whenett on the verge of a change of heart?
“I’m fixated on the term ‘content update,’ I’m well aware of that,” Whenett admits, “but we’re at a point where I’m completely confused. Because Sports Interactive’s communication isn’t clear. I don’t imagine that a content update means we’ll get an old feature back. Rather, that what we see in FM26 will be much better.“
The expert seems to be on the verge of a fundamental change of opinion: ”These are no longer question marks. I am currently very inclined to switch to the camp of those who have commented negatively on all my videos about FM26.“ Until now, Whenett had ”tried to report in a relatively balanced way.” For which he also received some criticism from his viewers.
“It’s still the same horror screen”
But even the most die-hard FM enthusiast is slowly reaching the end of his tether. “If this is content update 1, then I’m afraid of content updates 2 and 3.” As an example of the stagnation in FM26, Whenett cites one in-game view in particular: “The training screen was an absolute horror—and it’s still the same horror screen.”
The new Football Manager is now better than it was at release. However, Sports Interactive has not yet ironed out the “major flaws.” Even in the detailed patch notes, Whenett finds nothing that leaves him satisfied: “There’s nothing there that says they’ve added a chapter to FM24.” Not to mention a new era.