Games like Football Manager 2017

The Squirrel's verdictBoth involve managing a club roster, contracts, and player development over seasons. FTG replaces FM's simulated match engine with turn-based tactical combat on the pitch itself, so you directly control each play rather than watching an AI resolve your instructions. Suits managers who want hands-on control during matches instead of touchline spectating.

Not for you if you want realistic football simulation rather than turn-based tactical battles resembling XCOM with a football skin.

The Squirrel's verdictNew Star Manager is a card-based football management game built around squad building, tactics, and season progression, where decisions play out through randomized cards and mini-games rather than deep simulation systems. At $19.99 with a median playtime around 48 hours, it suits players who want an accessible management loop and find the results of their decisions clearly reflected in outcomes.

Not for you if you want granular tactical control, deep scouting and staff systems, or a match engine that goes beyond card-based mechanics.

The Squirrel's verdictWE ARE FOOTBALL 2024 covers squad building, transfers, and multi-season simulation, and adds stadium construction as a club-side management layer absent from FM. Reviewers highlight a cleaner, less spreadsheet-heavy interface and faster pacing. Transfer fee negotiations are described as basic, and the match engine shows less granular team-shape feedback than FM. Median playtime runs around 61 hours.

Not for you if you rely on deep transfer negotiations or detailed tactical granularity, since both areas are described by reviewers as more surface-level than FM.

The Squirrel's verdictSame football-management core—transfers, squad building, multi-season progression—but WE ARE FOOTBALL sits you at club-manager level rather than tactical trainer, with a match engine showing only the ball-carrier, not full pitch shape. Simpler systems, easier difficulty, faster sessions suit players who want club-building over minute tactical control.

Not for you if you want to watch full team shape during matches or need FM's depth of tactical instruction rather than higher-level club management.

The Squirrel's verdictSoccer Manager 2026 is free and covers squad management, tactics, transfers, and simulated matches. It is a port of a mobile product, and reviewers consistently flag a stripped interface, limited feature depth, and a gold-bar microtransaction system that gates standard actions like agent fee payments. Median playtime is around 17 hours.

Not for you if you want deep tactical systems or prefer management features to be fully accessible without a microtransaction currency.

The Squirrel's verdictSoccer Manager 2019 covers licensed teams, contracts, training, tactics, and transfers, but at significantly reduced depth compared to full FM. It includes a 3D match view that FM lacks, and multiple reviewers flag match outcomes as feeling scripted or repetitive across different clubs. Median playtime sits at 26.6 hours, well below what dedicated FM players log.

Not for you if you want tactical and data granularity, or matches that feel responsive to your specific team setup rather than following scripted patterns.

The Squirrel's verdictFootball Manager Touch 2018 delivers the tactical and transfer layer of full FM—squad building, match engine, season progression—without the staff assignments, training schedules, and board-level micromanagement. Reviews describe it as the right weight for players who find the full game's administrative depth excessive. Median playtime runs around 176 hours, and reviewers note the 2018 edition adds little beyond a database update over its predecessor.

Not for you if you rely on detailed staff management, training configuration, or text commentary as core parts of your routine.