Football Manager 2022 release date in USA: Game price, new features for devices

Football Manager 2022 is coming this November as the newest edition gets set for its big release.

Last year’s Football Manager 2021 proved popular with over 446 million matches played since launch and the excitement is building ahead of the launch of the new game. 

What is the Football Manager 2022 release date?

November 9, 2021 is the release date for Football Manager 2022. That means it will be available to buy and play in time for the busy holiday period.

Early Access is available to those who pre-purchase the game and that means the game will be available to play approximately two weeks before the official launch date around October 26.

The launch date has reverted to the customary early November time. Last year, the launch of Football Manager 2021 was delayed until the end of the November.

How much will Football Manager 2022 cost?

Football Manager 2022 is priced at $54.99  in the U.S. However, a 10 per cent reduction* applies if you wish to pre-purchase the game, meaning it will cost $49.50.

The game is available to buy as a PC or Mac download via Epic or Steam and the official Sega store, as well as the Microsoft store. 

Football Manager 2022 Xbox edition and Football Manager 2022 Touch will be considerably cheaper than the full game.

Football Manager 2021 Xbox was priced at $39.99 in the U.S., while Football Manager 2021 Touch cost $29.99.

What devices will Football Manager 2022 be on?

Football Manager 2022 will be available to play on PC, Mac, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One and mobile devices.

The Xbox edition of Football Manager 2022 will launch on the same date as the PC/Mac version, as will FM22 Mobile.

Football Manager 2022 Touch will also be available to play on the Nintendo Switch.

What new features will Football Manager 2022 have?

New features on Football Manager 2022 will be revealed in “late September” per the official website.

Last year, Football Manager 2021 saw a number of fresh additions, including xG data and match analysis, and Football Manager 2022 will no doubt aim to satisfy some desires.

Transfer system changes

Football Manager Studio Director Miles Jacobson has indicated that there will be more changes to the game’s transfer system in order to reflect the financial realities that have arisen out of the global COVID-19 pandemic.

“Many more clubs than normal will start the game with much smaller budgets available or still being in the position of having to try to sell players (as they still find themselves in real life),” Jacobson wrote in a September blog post. “Others will be struggling to reduce their squad sizes and wage bills.”

Graphics

With each iteration of Football Manager, efforts have been made to improve the gameplay graphics and that will be no different for Football Manager 2022.

Last year, the match UI (User Interface) was redesigned to improve lighting and actions of the match display. We can expect more upgrades to the simulation in FM22.

Leagues & licensing

There will be an update to the licensing in Football Manager 2022, with full details set to be confirmed in late September.

One notable change is the absence of ‘Manchester United’ from the game following a trademark dispute between the Premier League club and Sega. For the first time in the history of the game, the Old Trafford team will be known as ‘Manchester UFC’ or ‘Man UFC’ instead of their official name.

A tweet from the official Football Manager account in August 2021 read: “From FM22 onwards, the Manchester United football club will be named ‘Manchester UFC’ or ‘Man UFC’.

“These name changes have been made purely to settle the dispute on a no admissions basis.”

There have long been omissions in the history of Football Manager, with a number of teams and leagues not playable due to licensing.

Football Manager 2021 featured over 100 leagues from 52 different countries spread across five continents and Football Manager 2022 will be similarly stacked full of options.

The game’s developers are always open to new suggestions and a common request on the Sports Interactive Community forums is to include the Japanese football pyramid.

Women’s football

In 2021, the brains behind Football Manager announced that  women’s football would soon be introduced to the game, but Football Manager 2022 comes too early.

“We’ve been doing this behind the scenes for over a year. I’m sick of having to say to people on social media, when they’re asking me about it, ‘when we do it, we’ll do it properly’. We can now actually talk about it more,” Football Manager studio director Miles Jacobson said in July.

Tina Keech has been appointed the game’s head of women’s football research and the expectation is that the database required will take a number of years to build, so the women’s game will not be a feature in FM22.

Women coaches will feature, however, and have done for a number of editions of Football Manager.

Will COVID-19 be a factor?

Covid-19 will not be a feature in Football Manager 2022, with the game’s developers keen to ensure the game is an escape from reality.

Jacobson wrote in his September update: “Players will not miss matches because of COVID, players will not need to isolate when returning from holiday and, no, we will not have health officials coming onto the pitch to call off friendlies because some players haven’t followed the local isolation rules.”

He added: “Crowds will fill stadiums to pre-pandemic levels and club finances will, over time, return to normal – and handshakes are still there too, as you voted for last year.”

Football Manager 2022 trailer

A teaser trailer for Football Manager 2022 was released on Sept. 9 in conjunction with the launch date announcement.

Very little is given away in the trailer, with the focus mostly on reflecting on what has come before, with lines about dreaming big and earning success for the fans figuring prominently.

You can watch the trailer in the video above.