EA Sports Sacks FIFA Manager After 13-Year Run

EA Sports will cancel FIFA Manager, its football management sim for the PC, ending a 13-year run for the series that lately saw it finishing a distant second to Sega’s better regarded Football Manager

In an open letter to fans, Gerald Köhler, the founder of the game (known as Fussball Manager and then Total Club Manager before taking the FIFA Manager title in 2005) said that the game required a “new engine and/or corresponding online technology,” to give the series a lift. Current conditions don’t warrant such an investment, given “the niche market and general trend toward online and mobile games.” Köhler also alluded to Football Manager, though he did not name it, as practically dominating the market.

The most recent edition, FIFA Manager 14, was a “legacy edition,” a euphemism for a game with no significant upgrades (other than the roster) over the previous release.

“You have our heartfelt gratitude. We hope you’ll keep playing FM as long as possible, and that the fan sites will go all out to expand and improve the game wherever they can,” Köhler wrote. “For all your years of support and all your passion for our game, we thank you.”

Open Letter from Gerald [FIFA-Manager.com]