EA admits defeat to Football Manager

EA Sports has conceded the football sim genre to long-term rival Football Manager and announced it will no longer publish its own FIFA Manager series.

FIFA Manager 14 will go down as the last game in the franchise, lead designer Gerald Köhler has explained in an official blog post.

The series had come to the point where major investment would be required for future instalments - an investment that EA has decided isn't worth it due to Football Manager's dominance.

"The football manager genre at this level of sophistication is highly specialised and primarily played in two countries (England and Germany), in which - on top of everything - one game has practically dominated the market in recent years," Köhler wrote.

"The niche market and general trend toward online and mobile games were also contributing factors. Moreover, FM had reached a crossroads at which a new engine and/or corresponding online technology would be the only way to give the series a boost. When all these factors were evaluated, it led us to the decision to blow the final whistle."

EA's series began in 2001 and was previously titled Total Club Manager in the UK. Annual releases have followed ever since, and have been titled FIFA Manager since its 06 version.

The series' future now lies in the hands of players, Köhler concluded, and in their ability to continue supporting it even after EA has blown the final whistle.

"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. For all your years of support and all your passion for our game, we thank you."