You can play the original Football Manager, written by me, all those years ago, for the Spectrum. If you are one of the many that played it, it will bring back some memories. It is playable in a browser, and you can try it here.
Good luck playing!
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best game ever
Thank you so much, Kevin! You gave me back my teenage years. I wasted so much time playing your football manager games on my Commodore 64. And I’m going to waste another evening today. Thanks and all the best!
Cheers
Chris
I played this non stop on my ZX81 all those years ago. I’ve played hundreds of footy games since but this is still the best (for it’s time)!
I loved playing Football manager, I too enjoyed endless days striving for success, in the end I won the league and F.A. Cup, it was the first game of its kind, and way ahead of its years, thank you.
Kevin,
Even to this day, I still play FM on an emulator on my phone. 25 years on and it still occupies my time.
Fantastic stuff!
Thanks, that is very pleasing to know!
For my friends and I Football Manager was crack cocaine. I spent many many hours glued to it and I’m sure my career in IT was nudged along by learning from your source code (sorry – wasn’t exactly hard to view!). Now, just when I am fit to return to society you have re-aquainted me with FM courtesy of the Speccy emulator. There goes the evening. Again…
Thanks for the comment. Yes, a few people have told me they learned from looking at the source code. You are right it was not hard to break in to to see. Interestingly that was because when I put the original game out piracy was not around! So, I did put some copy protection in but no significant, and it stayed that way. I guess also with the code being in Basic it was more manageable to look at and learn from.
[...] So who is this Kevin, and what relevance does it have on today’s post? Well, Kevin Tombs developed the first every football manager simulation game for the ZX Spectrums back in the very early 1980’s. In the game everyone the opportunity to manager a team, and watch the game unfold in pure two dimensional unadulted by advertising green graphics. Want to see what kept us in our bedrooms for so long at the time without a staple through their naval? Well you can still play a version of the game by clicking here. [...]
[...] So who is this Kevin, and what relevance does it have on today’s post? Well, Kevin Tombs developed the first every football manager simulation game for the ZX Spectrums back in the very early 1980’s. In the game everyone the opportunity to manager a team, and watch the game unfold in pure two dimensional unadulted by advertising green graphics. Want to see what kept us in our bedrooms for so long at the time without a staple through their naval? Well you can still play a version of the game by clicking here. [...]
El unico juego de football que me ha gustado.
Gracias por las horas de diversión que pase frente al spectrum.
Hi Kevin
many thanks for this, and also for bringing back teenage nostalgia via this excellent blog. I was interested to read about the development of FM. It was always the definitive football manager game in the 80s for the Spectrum although there were some other decent ones around a little later (Soccer Boss AKA The Boss & Advanced Soccer Simulator). It says a lot for FM, that these never really tested the sales and popularity of FM, at least to my mind. I have a friend who often says, even to this day; “Kevin Toms was a genius”.
In fact, another feature of the game I really enjoyed (and me and friends found amusing) was to be able to change the team names, which me and my mate always did – to people in our school class or any other people we knew, even down to 80s Eastenders characters! I’m still smarting after being hammered 2-7 away at Ian Beale’s. It was always good to make up regional Leagues too. by changing the names.
And a season took about an hour, which was great – 4 seasons in an evening after tea- better than waiting 6 weeks to finish one on the newer footie manager games.
Overall , I am glad I found this blog site. I never play games on PC’s / Playstations etc, but I might be tempted with the online version. etc
Once again, many thanks Kevin Toms.
Thanks for your comments. I had not thought of that for changing the teams, but I can see the value in it.
[...] So who is this Kevin, and what relevance does it have on today’s post? Well, Kevin Toms developed the first every football manager simulation game for the ZX Spectrums back in the very early 1980’s. In the game everyone the opportunity to manager a team, and watch the game unfold in pure two dimensional unadulted by advertising green graphics. Want to see what kept us in our bedrooms for so long at the time without a staple through their naval? Well you can still play a version of the game by clicking here. [...]
[...] So who is this Kevin, and what relevance does it have to the game? Well, Kevin Toms developed the first ever football manager simulation game for the ZX Spectrum back in the very early 1980′s. In the game everyone the opportunity to manager a team, and watch the game unfold in pure two dimensional unadulted by advertising green graphics. Want to see what kept us in our bedrooms for so long at the time without a staple through their naval? Well you can still play a version of the game by clicking here. [...]
[...] In the game everyone the opportunity to manager a team, and watch the game unfold in pure two dimensional unadulterated by advertising green graphics. Want to see what kept us in our bedrooms for so long at the time without a staple through their naval? Well you can still play a version of the game by clicking here. [...]
[...] In the game everyone the opportunity to manager a team, and watch the game unfold in pure two dimensional unadulterated by advertising green graphics. Want to see what kept us in our bedrooms for so long at the time without a staple through their naval? Well you can still play a version of the game by clicking here. [...]
[...] In the game everyone the opportunity to manager a team, and watch the game unfold in pure two dimensional unadulterated by advertising green graphics. Want to see what kept us in our bedrooms for so long at the time without a staple through their naval? Well you can still play a version of the game by clicking here. [...]
Oh great.. Like I didnt spend enough hours playing this game back in the 80s.. Bye bye weekend…
‘Kevin Toms – Designer’ – You’re image and those words take me back. You’re a legend Kevin and my thanks go out to you for making my adolescence bearable! I hope you got paid shed loads of cash, mate!
Waiting for iOS-app… Keep on!