That doesn't mean the FM franchise has come to an end though. The developers now shift focus to the next release to kick-start the new era of Football Manager.
Due to stakeholder compliance, including legal and financial regulations, they couldn't have issued this statement any sooner.
The developers failed to achieve what they set out to do in several aspects of the game, the overarching player experience and interface in particular.
Even though they now have clear validation for the new direction of the game, it remains too far away from the desired standards.
The full focus now returns to creating a new era for Football Manager, ensuring that the next release achieves that goal and hits the quality level everyone expects.
The official statement
Sports Interactive regret to inform that, following extensive internal discussion and careful consideration with SEGA, we have made the difficult decision to cancel Football Manager 25 and shift our focus to the next release.Source: footballmanager.com
For the large numbers of you who pre-ordered FM25, we thank you enormously for your trust and support – we’re very sorry to have let you down. Please see the FAQs below on obtaining your refund.
We know this will come as a huge disappointment, especially given that the release date has already moved twice, and you have been eagerly anticipating the first gameplay reveal. We can only apologise for the time it has taken to communicate this decision. Due to stakeholder compliance, including legal and financial regulations, today was the earliest date that we could issue this statement.
We have always prided ourselves on delivering the best value for money games that bring you countless hours of enjoyment, that feel worth every moment and every penny you spend. With the launch of FM25 we set out to create the biggest technical and visual advancement in the series for a generation, laying the building blocks for a new era.
Due to a variety of challenges that we’ve been open about to date, and many more unforeseen, we currently haven’t achieved what we set out to do in enough areas of the game, despite the phenomenal efforts of our team. Each decision to delay the release was made with the aim of getting the game closer to the desired level but, as we approached critical milestones at the turn of the year, it became unmistakably clear that we would not achieve the standard required, even with the adjusted timeline.
Whilst many areas of the game have hit our targets, the overarching player experience and interface is not where we need it to be. As extensive evaluation has demonstrated, including consumer playtesting, we have clear validation for the new direction of the game and are getting close – however, we’re too far away from the standards you deserve.
We could have pressed on, released FM25 in its current state, and fixed things down the line - but that’s not the right thing to do. We were also unwilling to go beyond a March release as it would be too late in the football season to expect players to then buy another game later in the year.
Through the cancellation, every effort is now focused on ensuring that our next release achieves our goal and hits the quality level we all expect. We will update you on how we are progressing with that as soon as we are able to do so.
Thank you for reading, your patience and your continued support. Our full focus now returns to creating a new era for Football Manager.
FAQ
Does this affect all platforms and versions of Football Manager 25?Yes, all versions are cancelled and FM25 will not be released on any platforms.
I pre-ordered the game on PC / Mac how do I obtain my refund?
Pre-Purchase orders for Football Manager 25 will automatically be refunded in full if purchased through an official SEGA-approved retailer. Retailers will process refunds in due course, for any enquiries please contact your point of purchase.
Why didn’t they cancel FM25 earlier when they opted to delay to March?
At the time of the decision, based on the data available, it was their strong belief that they could reach their quality target level and deliver a game the players would be happy with, despite the delay. The challenges encountered beyond this point meant they were unable to achieve that.
An FM25 update was promised in January. Why the delay in sharing this information?
As stated above, stakeholder compliance impacted the sharing of information until now which relates to SEGA Sammy Holdings being a publicly traded company.
Will there be an FM24 update with 2024/25 season data?
No. As clarified in October when the game was delayed, this is a substantial undertaking and would divert critical resources away from the development of the next release which requires the studio's full focus.
Will FM24 remain playable on subscription platforms?
They are currently in discussions with their various platform partners and licensors and hope to extend their FM24 agreements. They will provide an update on this in due course.
Discussion: Football Manager 25 is cancelled - Focus on FM26
14 comments have been posted so far.
People tried that before and it didn't end well because the developers cannot and do not want to be dealing with complaints and support inquiries about a modified match engine.
But the idea of having a product and refusing to sell it just to bet on the next years sales that might refund the losses and meet the usual benefits and even surpass them is HILARIOUS !! - But I understand some prefer seeing themselves talk and others to act.
Cheers !
What we’re seeing here isn’t just about Unity or coding challenges; it’s about how businesses make strategic decisions under pressure. March 31 was always a key deadline because it’s Sega’s financial year-end, and companies in this position are often forced to make tough calls based on financial reporting cycles, not just development progress.
It’s also worth noting that it isn’t unusual for a company to be trading with high levels of financial debt—many large corporations operate this way, using shelf companies and various financial structures to manage cash flow. The financials we see from a company of this size are often largely irrelevant in the grand scheme. But one thing is certain: you can’t justify a major increase in staffing to shareholders unless you either had the cash available or a clear future commercial product in mind. SI weren’t hiring aggressively in 2023 just for the sake of it—there was a plan in place.
And that’s why I firmly believe SI are going hard for the American market. They now have the time to properly develop FM26, and in the meantime, they’ve effectively starved their existing customer base. This isn’t unprecedented—Rockstar did the same thing with GTA VI, keeping players on GTA V for over a decade to build insane demand. Nintendo did it with Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, delaying for six years so that when it launched, it immediately broke sales records. SI skipping FM25 could be a deliberate move to make FM26 feel like an absolute must-buy, especially for their existing audience who will be stuck playing an increasingly outdated game.
It’s a classic forced upgrade strategy, and it’s likely deliberate. If they market it right, FM26 could actually end up being one of their biggest sellers ever—especially with a bigger push into the US market ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
Whether FM26 will actually be the game they’re promising depends on what they’ve learnt from this mess, but what’s clear is that SI weren’t willing to gamble on a rushed product. That tells you just how bad things must have been behind the scenes.
Will it be possible to keep my funds here and use it for the purchase of Fm26 when it's out
They are switching to a new engine from 2020. They couldn't do it in 5 years and one extra year won't solve anything. It's just that incompetent people were working on the project, and the management ignored this fact, rejecting any criticism from the players. Another victim of "toxic positivism"...
Thankfully despite the financial loss of not having a FM 25 seems SI will get back on their feet for FM 26, I love the game and hope SI will keep on giving us new releases to keep playing the game we all like.
Have to feel bad for many content creators and sites that rely on sales from FM as part of their revenue.
I guess pr0 and FMTU will have lot of work to do in next weeks/months