How Manager 11 works works
Two minutes, everything you need. The world does not wait, so:
Next gameday: soonYour first five minutes
In this order. The first one is the one that decides your results.
- 1
Put out a team
Tactics›This is the one that matters. Pick your eleven and your formation and submit it. Whatever you submit is what plays, in every match, until you change it. Skip this and the game picks for you, which is how most new managers lose their first few matches without ever seeing why.
- 2
Look at who you have
Squad›Tap any player for his skills, his wage and his form. Four numbers drive everything: tackling, passing, shooting and the goalkeeping one. A player is good at the thing his numbers say, not the position label.
- 3
Check when you play next
Matches›Gamedays tick on a clock, not when you log in. The countdown at the top of this page is the real one. Your club plays whether you are here or not, using the last team you submitted.
- 4
See what you can afford
Finances›Wages come out every single gameday, not once a week, and that catches people out. If the balance is falling and you cannot see why, it is almost always the wage bill rather than anything you bought.
- 5
Then, and only then, buy someone
Transfers›Market for players on sale, Free Agents for players who cost nothing but wages, My Listings for anyone you have put up for sale, Offers for bids waiting on your answer. A new club almost always gets more out of the free agents than the market.
One shared world
Every club lives in a single persistent pyramid, from the ESMS Premier Division down to the local leagues. Some clubs are run by real managers, the rest by AI, and everyone competes in the same leagues, cups, transfer market and leaderboard. Matches play on a schedule around the clock, whether you are online or not, and the engine plays exactly the tactics you submitted. And when a fixture pits you against another manager, you can step into the live match lobby and play it out head-to-head in real time.
Tactics: the page that matters most
Pick your formation and your eleven on Tactics and they are honoured in every match you play. No lineup submitted means the assistant picks for you, and assistants are not paid to be clever. Set it before the next gameday, then check Fixtures for what your club plays next, league and cup.
Building your squad
Bid on listed players in Transfers, within the transfer budget the board sets. And check the free agents: there are over a thousand of them, they cost nothing but wages, and they are the best value in the lower leagues by a distance.
The long game
Your youth academy produces prospects each season: promote the best before the season ends or they will eventually walk for free. Training and coaches develop the players you keep.
Money
Gate receipts and sponsors in, wages out. The transfer budget and the bank balance are separate: a bid needs both. Expand the stadium to grow matchday income. Do not blow the lot on one striker.
Climbing
Win your league to get promoted, avoid the drop, and chase the three cup competitions alongside it. The job market is live too: succeed and bigger clubs come calling, struggle and the board gets ideas.
Quick answers
Is this multiplayer?
Yes, twice over. Everyone plays in one shared persistent pyramid against real managers and AI clubs, and when your fixture is against another manager you can play it live, head-to-head, in the Multiplayer lobby.
What happens while I am offline?
The world keeps running and your club keeps playing, using the last tactics you submitted. Set a lineup you trust before you log off.
Does it work on mobile?
Yes, the whole game runs in a mobile browser, and a native app is in testing.
What are credits?
An optional boost: scouting missions, stadium builds, paying down debt. Everything in the game can be done without them, credits just save time.
Do coaches actually do anything?
Yes. Your best goalkeeping, defensive, tactical and attacking coach each speed up how fast the squad develops in that area after matches, by up to 5% at attribute 20. Your best motivator gives the squad up to 10% more fitness back between gamedays. Fitness and strength coaching make every training cone worth more, up to 15% together. Your designated youth coach nudges the quality of next season’s academy intake. Only the best coach in each area counts, so a second coach with a lower number adds nothing, and discipline is the one attribute with no effect yet. None of it changes a match result directly: coaching multiplies the gains your players already earn, it never hands out free points.
Why did my player’s skills go down?
Skills move with match form. Every game, players earn ability points for goals, assists, key tackles and passes, shots, saves and clean sheets, and when a skill’s points pass 1,000 it goes up by one. Points come off too. When you lose, two random players from your side lose 60 points on every skill, and when you win, two random players gain 60. A red card costs up to 20 points on every skill and a yellow up to 8. If a skill’s points fall below zero, that skill drops by one, so a player who has only just gone up a point can lose it again after one bad match. Keepers only move on their stopping. Win, keep your players on the pitch, and pick the ones who are in form.
Does it matter where I play someone?
Yes, through his numbers rather than his label. Each line of the team is judged mainly on one skill: defenders on tackling, midfielders on passing, forwards on shooting, with the other two counting for about a third. So a defender who can pass is a genuine midfielder, and one who can’t will struggle there, whatever his position says. Sides matter too: a player on a side he doesn’t like (left, centre or right) plays at 75% of his tackling, passing and shooting, which is the orange 75% badge on the Tactics pitch. Your tactic shifts these weights a little.
Where do I see the players I have put up for sale?
Transfers, then the My Listings tab. It shows the asking price, how many bids are in, and how many gamedays each listing has left before the market decides for you.
One of my players left and I never sold him. Why?
If he was 33 or over and sat on the transfer list for 10 gamedays with nobody bidding, he leaves as a free agent and you get nothing. Younger players just come off the market after 25 gamedays and stay at the club. Both countdowns are now shown on the My Listings tab, so it should not surprise you again, and you can pull a listing at any time from the player page.
Can I see a player’s potential?
There is no hidden potential rating in the game. What drives growth is the ability points each player earns from matches, which you spend on his skills from his own page. Younger players simply have more seasons of that ahead of them, and each upgrade costs more once a skill passes 20. Prospects flagged as a generational talent on the Youth page are the closest thing to a potential tag.
How long is a season?
Sixty-one gamedays, and a gameday ticks on a clock rather than when you log in. The countdown at the top of this page is the live one. Season length is something we are actively asking managers about in the Clubhouse, so if you have a view on it, say so there.
Why does a skill upgrade sometimes need more than 1,000 points?
Players earn ability points from match performance, and 1,000 points buys the next +1 skill while their best skill is 20 or under. Past 20 each upgrade costs progressively more: a 27-rated player needs 1,745 and a 30-rated player needs 2,634. The price is set by the player’s best skill, so a specialist pays that price on every skill. That rising price is deliberate: it keeps the world’s very best players in the low 30s instead of inflating forever, so your progress bar always shows the real cost for that player.
Still stuck? Ask in the forums.
Real question, real answer. Hearing what confuses a new manager is how this page gets better.
Go set your lineup