The original Championship Manager title screen The Championship Manager series is a series of British computer games, the first of which was released in 1992. Championship Manager (sometimes abbreviated "CM", "Champ Manager", "Champ Man", or "Champo") is a football-management simulation. It was one of the most popular computer game franchises of all time. Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...
Image File history File links No higher resolution available. ...
A computer game is a game composed of a computer-controlled virtual universe that players interact with in order to achieve a defined goal or set of goals. ...
A player (wearing the red kit) has penetrated the defence (in the white kit) and is taking a shot at goal. ...
The Championship Manager brand and game was conceived by two brothers: Paul and Oliver Collyer. In a scenario typical of many self-made computer game programming teams in the early days of the industry, the original Championship Manager game was written from their bedroom in Shropshire, England. Since then, they have founded a development company to take the game further, Sports Interactive, and are now based in Islington, North London. Oliver now only works for the company on a part time basis, but remains co-Chair, with his brother. The Collyer brothers and Sports Interactive are no longer involved with the development of Championship Manager (see below). Paul Collyer and Oliver Collyer are two English computer game designers and hackers. ...
John Carmack, one of the worlds leading game programmers, working on Doom 3 using an IDE. Game programming is a subset of game development. ...
Shropshire (pronounced /, -/), alternatively known as Salop[6] or abbreviated Shrops[7], is a county in the West Midlands of England. ...
For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ...
Sports Interactive badge Sports Interactive is a computer games development company currently based in Islington, North London and owned by international software giant, Sega. ...
For other uses, see Islington (disambiguation). ...
Championship Manager
-
The release of the first version of the game was not an outstanding success, and sales were steady rather than spectacular. Reviews ranged from the encouraging to the dismissive; the original game was written in BASIC, a programming language not well suited to programming high-performance computer games. Other limitations included the fact that generated names were used for each team, whereas its key competitors of the time, such as Premier Manager and The Manager, included real players in the game. Championship Manager is a series of English computer games, the first of which was released in 1992. ...
BASIC (Beginners All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) is a family of high-level programming languages. ...
A programming language is an artificial language that can be used to control the behavior of a machine, particularly a computer. ...
Premier Manager 98 turned to be the last in the series to achieve success, even if only moderately Premier Manager is the name of a football management video game series started in 1992. ...
Championship Manager 93/94 -
The release of Championship Manager 93/94 one year later built on the original game, ported to the C programming language, adding a real life player database and other features. By now Championship Manager had built a large following amongst hardened football fans all over the UK. Championship Manager 93/94 (often called CM 93 or CM 94) refers to the second installment in the Championship Manager series of football management video games. ...
C is a general-purpose, block structured, procedural, imperative computer programming language developed in 1972 by Dennis Ritchie at the Bell Telephone Laboratories for use with the Unix operating system. ...
Championship Manager 2 -
If the Championship Manager 1.x series laid the groundwork, the success of the franchise went stratospheric with the release of Championship Manager 2 in September of 1995. The game again included up to date squads for each team, added photos of each ground to build an atmosphere of the teams you were managing/visiting, and included a now infamous in-match commentary engine with the voice of famous British football commentator Clive Tyldesley. Championship Manager 2 is a football management computer game in the Sports Interactives Championship Manager series. ...
Clive Tyldesley is a British sport commentator. ...
Two seasonal updates followed over the next two years.
Championship Manager 96/97 -
Championship Manager 96/97 was released in 1996 and was the first game to feature a non-British league as playable in the standard game - in this case the Italian leagues. It also included several rule changes to reflect the many changes going on in the real life world of football at that time, such as the Bosman ruling. Championship Manager 96/97 (also known as Championship Manager 2: 96/97 Update) is a game in the Championship Manager series of football management computer games. ...
Year 1996 (MCMXCVI) was a leap year starting on Monday (link will display full 1996 Gregorian calendar). ...
In football (soccer), the Bosman ruling is a 1995 European Court of Justice decision that allows professional football players in the European Union (EU) to move freely to another club at the end of their term of contract with their present team. ...
Championship Manager 97/98 -
Released in 1997, this version of the game included nine leagues from around the world which could be run simultaneously, new competition formats to follow those implemented in reality, and many more tactical options. The game remains very popular amongst fans of the series, mainly for its simplicity compared to the huge, processor-intensive games that the series has since developed into. Championship Manager 97/98 is a game in the Championship Manager series or football management computer games, based on the Championship Manager 2 game engine. ...
For the band, see 1997 (band). ...
Championship Manager 3 -
This was the first of the seasonal updates to CM3 and saw the American MLS added to the list of playable leagues. It also included more media involvement, board interaction and improved scouting functions. Championship Manager 3 is a game in the Championship Manager series or football management computer games, the first in the third generation of the series. ...
Championship Manager: Season 99/00
Championship Manager: Season 00/01 -
Main article: Championship Manager 00/01 Ten more playable leagues were introduced for this version, including Australia, Greece, Northern Ireland, Russia and Wales. It was also the first version of the game to come with an official data editor - something which has been continued for all subsequent versions.
Championship Manager: Season 01/02 -
No new playable leagues were added to this version of CM (until a patch was later released that added South Korea's K-League to the game) allowing the developers to fine tune the game's mechanics. As a result the game is still widely regarded as the best version of all-time amongst many fans. Indeed, many people still play this rather than the newer versions. CM01/02 also contained one of the most infamous players in CM history - the fictional Tó Madeira. Championship Manager 01/02 is a football management computer game in the Sports Interactives Championship Manager series. ...
The Korea Professional Football League (K-League) is South Koreas professional club football league and is one of the most successful leagues in Asian club football competitions. ...
Championship Manager 01/02 is a football management computer game in the Sports Interactives Championship Manager series. ...
In April 2002, Sports Interactive took the decision to move away from the PC platform for the first time since CM2, producing a version of CM01/02 for the Xbox. The success of the game saw a follow up, CM02/03 released seven months later. Sports Interactive badge Sports Interactive is a computer games development company currently based in Islington, North London and owned by international software giant, Sega. ...
The Xbox is a sixth generation era video game console produced by Microsoft Corporation. ...
Championship Manager 4 -
What all CM fans were waiting for, however, was Championship Manager 4. Released on March 28, 2003, CM4 broke all records on its release becoming, at that time, the fastest-selling PC game ever on its first day of release. By now its fame was international; encompassing fans via online communities and buy-in through the additional leagues in the game. CM4 included thirty-nine playable leagues, plus four more in its update, CM03/04. On the gameplay side, a top-down view of the match engine was included for the first time, a significant shift from the "imagination" philosophy championed by Sports Interactive previously. Championship Manager 4 is a football management game in the Championship Manager series. ...
is the 87th day of the year (88th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Championship Manager 03/04 is a football management game in the Championship Manager series. ...
Despite its high sales, CM4 was generally not well-received by hardcore fans for several reasons. The game ran quite slow on computers which had previously had no difficulty in running CM games (although arguably this is a common issue with software). The original release contained some functional bugs which in some cases rendered the game farcical - the score in matches could randomly change and lower division clubs were able to sign superstars with ease. In one memorable bug, non-league club Northwich Victoria would move to a stadium with a capacity of 850,000. Sports Interactive also irritated some fans with the euphemistic term "Enhancement Packs" used to describe what were essentially patches to fix the bugs in the original release. This term was dropped for future releases. Computer software (or simply software) refers to one or more computer programs and data held in the storage of a computer for some purpose. ...
A software bug is an error, flaw, mistake, failure, or fault in a computer program that prevents it from behaving as intended (e. ...
Northwich Victoria Football Club is an English football team based in Wincham, Northwich, Cheshire. ...
Sports Interactive badge Sports Interactive is a computer games development company currently based in Islington, North London and owned by international software giant, Sega. ...
In computing, a patch is a small piece of software designed to update or fix problems with a computer program or its supporting data. ...
Championship Manager: Season 03/04 -
Main article: Championship Manager: Season 03/04 This was the final CM game to be developed by the founding fathers of the series, Sports Interactive, before they were forced to start a new franchise under the name Football Manager. CM03/04 ironed out many of the problems seen in CM4 as well as adding new features and more new playable leagues to the game's already bulging portfolio. Sports Interactive badge Sports Interactive is a computer games development company currently based in Islington, North London and owned by international software giant, Sega. ...
This article is about the computer game series. ...
The Eidos / Sports Interactive split The creators of Championship Manager, SI Games, split with publishers Eidos, and signed a deal with Sega, to continue the series under the new name, Football Manager. After the split, both parties kept their intellectual property. SI Games kept the base code, the game database and programming of the game, whilst Eidos kept the name "Championship Manager" and its interface. Eidos Interactive is a publisher of video and computer games with its parent company based in the United Kingdom. ...
This article is about the video game company. ...
This article is about the computer game series. ...
For the 2006 film, see Intellectual Property (film). ...
The reasons for the split have never been revealed, although it is generally felt that Sports Interactive enjoy far greater creative freedom under Sega.
The former working partners are now in direct competition - Eidos and Beautiful Game Studios producing future Championship Manager titles, and Sega and Sports Interactive with Football Manager. Beautiful Game Studios is a computer game development studio based in London, England. ...
Although under a different name, Football Manager is very similar in gameplay terms to the previous CM games and preferred by original CM gamers, whereas CM5 is a totally new game due to it being written almost from scratch by a new development team.
This emergence of the Football Manager series and the fierce marketing battle between the two could spell danger for EA Sports' Total Club Manager series and other, less successful football management games. current EA Sports logo EA Sports is a brand name used by Electronic Arts since 1993 to distribute games based on sports. ...
TCM 2003 cover Total Club Manager (short: TCM) is the name of EA Sports football management series, except in Germany where it is known as Fussball Manager. ...
Championship Manager 5 -
This was the first version in the series to be developed in-house by Eidos. Both Football Manager 2005 (FM2005) and Championship Manager 5 were slated for a release date of October or November, 2004. However, the release date of Championship Manager 5 was put back by Eidos to March 2005, due to the extent of work discovered in coding the game from scratch. This allowed Football Manager 2005 a clear run to establish itself ahead of the release of CM5. Championship Manager 5 is the fifth installment of the popular Championship Manager series of football management computer games. ...
This article is about the computer game series. ...
Championship Manager 2006 -
The follow-up to Championship Manager 5 was released on PC on March 31, 2006 under the name Championship Manager 2006. Championship Manager 2006 is a computer game in Eidos Championship Manager series. ...
is the 90th day of the year (91st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Again, this version did little to reverse the growing gap in quality between CM and Football Manager. Basic features that had been a staple of the latter from over a decade, such as international management, were missing from the boxed version of CM 2006.
November 10, 2006, saw the arrival of CM2006 (with CM5 not being ported) on Macintosh. CM2007 is also planned for release on the OS X platform, in 2007. is the 314th day of the year (315th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Championship Manager 2007 -
Championship Manager 2007 was released on 2006-10-13. Championship Manager 2007 is the latest iteration in Eidos Championship Manager series of computer games. ...
Year 2006 (MMVI) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ...
is the 286th day of the year (287th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Championship Manager 2008 -
Main article: Championship Manager 2008 Championship Manager 2008 was released on 2007-11-02. Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st century. ...
is the 306th day of the year (307th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
Other CM games There have been various games over years which fall outside the traditional Championship Manager series. These include a handheld version, a massively mulitplayer online version, and mobile phone game and even a CM-based quiz game.
Championship Manager Quiz -
Main article: Championship Manager Quiz Something of a departure from Sports Interactive usual style, CM Quiz was developed as a bit of fun. The game was released on PC and PlayStation (PSOne) in late 2001. It doesn't really have much to do with Championship Manager games, but instead is a football quiz game containing a huge 11,000 multiple choice questions. It marked a milestone for Sports Interactive as it was they first time they had released one of their games on a console platform and also their first ever non football-management game.
Championship Manager Online -
Main article: Championship Manager Online In an effort to compensate for the lack of an online multiplayer mode in CM5, Eidos teamed up with Jadestone to create Championship Manager Online (more commonly known as CM-Online or CMO) a completely separate online game based on the Championship Manager series. CM-Online is a subscription-based MMOG and as the game is based solely online, players do not need to buy any software, they just pay a monthly for membership of the game's website. Jadestone Group is a video game development company based in Stockholm, Sweden. ...
A massive multiplayer online game (MMOG) is a type of computer game that enables hundreds or thousands of players to simultaneously interact in a game world they are connected to via the Internet. ...
Championship Manager 5 Solo In August 2005, Eidos released a version of Championship Manager for Java-enabled mobile phones, called Championship Manager 5 Solo (or, more commonly, CM5 Solo). The game was developed by Dynamo Games and was released for phones on the 3, Orange and Vodafone live! services, and has since been released for the O2 network. For other uses, see 3 (disambiguation). ...
Orange SA IPA: is a mobile network operator and an internet service provider that is a subsidiary of France Télécom. ...
Vodafone live!â„¢ is the brand name for the multimedia portal service of mobile phone operator Vodafone, which was initially developed by Japans J-Phone under the J-Sky brand. ...
The O2 plc logo. ...
Early reviews of the game, such as those published by The Guardian and MobileGameFAQs.com, were complimentary of the game's addictiveness and playability and suggested that it was one of the best mobile games available at that time. [1] For other uses, see Guardian. ...
It also won the Tiga game of the year award for 2005. Tiga can refer to two different things. ...
The follow-up to CM5 Solo - Championship Manager 2006 Mobile - was released at the end of March 2006 on Orange and Vodafone UK.
Championship Manager Mobile 2007 CM Mobile 2007 was released at the start of April 2007 with a new set of features. The mobile version was developed by Dynamo Games.
EURO CUP - A new feature of CM 2007 is the addition of a European Cup Competition. In this feature you will find the full 32 team group stages competing against the best teams (with full squads) from England, Scotland, Portugal, Spain, Germany, France, Italy, Holland, Sweden, Denmark, Turkey, Ukraine, Switzerland, Czech Republic & Belgium. If your team gets past the group stages then they go to the knockout rounds where you will play 2-leg matches in order to reach the final. Penalties and extra-time will decide full-time draws.
PRESS CONFERENCES - Another new feature is a real in-game press conference. These will occur before crucial games, during cup runs and league challenges and also before and after the season begins. You will be faced with different reporters who will be asking questions, and you must satisfy them with the answers they are looking for. Your performance is monitored against a pressure bar which will show how well you are handling the situation.
Championship Manager PSP -
On December 9, 2005, Eidos released a version of CM for the Sony PSP, called Championship Manager PSP. This game, developed by Gusto Games, is essentially a cut-down version of Championship Manager 5, featuring fewer playable leagues and a smaller player database, thus allowing it to run on the PSP. This article refers to the 2005 Sony PSP version of Championship Manager, for the original 1992 version see Championship Manager. ...
is the 343rd day of the year (344th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...
The finished PlayStation Portable, and a variety of accessories. ...
External links | 
Feeds |
Contact