Football Manager 2024 vs Football Manager 2023: What’s new?

The Football Manager game is becoming more popular by the year, with Football Manager 2023 seeing a series’ record 5-million player count. 

Sports Interactive is hoping to build on this success by introducing even more features with the upcoming Football Manager 2024. But what upgrades can you expect from the next instalment? 

We’ve created this comparison guide to highlight the key differences between Football Manager 2024 and Football Manager 2023. It’s worth pointing out that Sports Interactive hasn’t revealed all of the new features just yet, so we’ll be updating this list as we hear more. But if you want to check out the new changes announced so far, check them out below. 

Save transfers from old games

Starting a new game on the latest entry of Football Manager is always a bitter-sweet moment, as while it’s great to check out all of the new upgrades, it’s also sad to leave behind your old save files, especially if you were on the verge of promotion. 

This won’t be an issue for Football Manager 2024 players, as Sports Interactive is providing the option to transfer save files for the first time. Anyone in the middle of a playthrough on Football Manager 2023, Football Manager 2023 Console or Football Manager 2023 Touch will be able to continue their journey on Football Manager 2024 by loading up the save file.

The only version that won’t be supported is Football Manager 2024 Mobile, which Sports Interactive is actively exploring. But for anyone playing on PC or console, it’s fantastic news to hear that you’ll be able to continue your career into the new game. 

Playable Japanese football leagues

Sports Interactive has announced that it will be introducing three new football leagues for Football Manager 2024, all of which are based in Japan: the J1, J2 and J3 leagues. 

It’s not common for Sports Interactive to add in new leagues given the level of research and data that’s required, but it’s great to see an increase to the number of new playable clubs. And with Japan producing a number of talented players in recent years, such as Kaoru Mitoma, Takefusa Kubo and Wataru Endo, scouting the new Japanese leagues may prove to be a fruitful opportunity. 

Interestingly, there’s still no word on whether the Saudi Pro League will be joining the Football Manager 2024 roster, despite the recent arrival of major players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Neymar and Sadio Mane. We reckon the Saudi Pro League may well be added to the series for Football Manager 2025, but the 2024 edition could come too soon. 

Negative transfer budgets 

In previous editions of Football Manager, an incoming transfer would be blocked if you didn’t have enough money in your current budget to complete the deal. Sports Interactive is adding a little more flexibility for Football Manager 2024 by introducing negative transfer budgets. 

By overspending, you’ll now be able to spend more money than what was set in your transfer budget. But when doing so, your board will warn you that you’ll have to balance the books by selling players and transfer clauses. Failure to do so within a set time will see the club’s boards take control and sell off your players instead, making it a high risk option. 

Smarter AI managers 

Rival football managers have been given a big upgrade for Football Manager 2024, as they’ll now make smarter decisions both in the transfer market and on match days. AI-controlled managers will now target transfer signings that fit well into their style of play, while also putting more emphasis on the likes of form, reputation and potential rather than just the current ability. 

AI managers will now also be more likely to pick high-potential youth prospects in their matchday squad to ensure they’re gaining enough experience to fulfil their potential. Previously, managers would only factor in current ability when selecting a squad. 

With these numerous changes, AI managers should prove to be more competitive in Football Manager 2024, making it even more difficult for you to dominate the league. 

New ways to sell players

Selling players can be a frustrating process in Football Manager, as it’s difficult to whip up interest from other clubs, especially if a player is on high wages. Sports Interactive has acknowledged this pain point and introduced multiple new ways to sell off players for Football Manager 2024. 

Firstly, you’re afforded more options to interact with agents, allowing you to either gauge interest in a player from other clubs or try and start the process of pushing a player out the door as fast as possible. And if an agent is not being cooperative, you can hire an intermediary instead. 

An intermediary can help to generate interest in a player to make it easier to sell them. The intermediary will expect up to 10% commission of the transfer in return, so it’s only probably worthwhile if you’re desperate to get a player off the books. 

The last new option includes a digital service called TransferRoom, which replicates the real-world service and lists all of the players currently available for a transfer or loan. Sports Interactive warns that this isn’t a speedy solution, but is less likely to cause disruption in a dressing room than pushing through a deal via an intermediary.