Today heralds a new era for football management as
Everton Football Club becomes the first club to officially recruit
the services of a computer game and its developers as part of their
back room team.
In a football and gaming first Everton FC has signed an exclusive
deal with Sports Interactive, developers of the football management
videogame Football Manager, to give manager David Moyes and his
coaches unrivalled access to its database of over 370,000 players
and staff. Everton will be able to instantly scan 20,000 active
teams in more than 50 countries worldwide with immediate access to
the largest scouting network in football with over 1,000 scouts
from around the globe.
The unique database has made Football Manager the most popular
football management simulation in gaming and will help Everton FC
spot the best young talent from around the world. In the past,
Football Manager has accurately identified Wayne Rooney’s
potential talent when he was just fifteen and has been the first to
predict other future stars including Lionel Messi, Ashley Young and
Jose Baxter.
The game’s original creators Paul and Oliver Collyer have been
approached by clubs wanting to sign the game in the past, but this
is the first time they have put pen to paper to hand over the
game’s database and bring virtual football management into the real
world.
Paul Collyer comments:
“The game’s database is a valuable resource with the most extensive
scouting network in football so Everton FC is making a top signing.
I am personally delighted with today’s announcement as I’m a
Toffees fan. Standing on the pitch with my signing on shirt is as
close to my boyhood dream of playing at Goodison Park as I will
ever get.”
Studio Director Miles Jacobson adds:
“We’ve known for a while that teams use the game to research
certain players, whether to buy or to check out the opposition, but
this formal recognition by a premiership team is fantastic and we
are sure it will prove a fruitful one for the Everton FC.”
Football Manager has been fully updated for the new 2008/09
football season with all the latest league, club and player data
giving armchair managers everywhere the most up to date stats to
manage their teams with the most realistic management experience
available.
