Football Manager 2023 is set to release later this year.

The game has yet to be formally announced but it follows an annual release schedule and we expect to see the game revealed over the next few weeks.

FM22, indeed, released on November 8th, 2021, and we’d expect FM23 to follow a similar release pattern.

The beta will come out two weeks prior, giving players the opportunity to start playing the game, kicking off their saves, and potentially reporting any bugs that are found.

We’ve taken a look at a variety of different saves thus far, including a Moneyball save and a Director of Football save, as well as a youth-only game.

There are a number of ways to play the game but we also like to indulge those amongst you who want to suffer in Football Manager.

So, as a result, we’ve put together a guide on how to do the San Marino save – famously, the most difficult save you can possibly take on in Football Manager.

How to do the San Marino save on FM23

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England celebrate scoring vs San Marino in World Cup qualifying.

So, strap yourselves in here, because this one is a corker.

The first thing you need to know is that you’ll need an edited database to be able to do this save, because the Sammarinese league system is not represented in FM22 and isn’t likely to be in FM23, either.

However, a dedicated team of modders continually ensure that the challenge is accessible for players.

Cattolica Calcio San Marino are the only club that can be used for this, as they are eligible to play in the Italian divisions, which is important. You’ll need to win Serie A and the Champions League for this challenge.

Get yourself an Italian database that extends to the Italian fifth tier, where they are currently playing.

The only issue is that they only produce Italian youth players because they’re hard-coded, but again if you download the correct edited database, that will be fixed.

The rules of the save are pretty simple from here on, but they’re really difficult because you’re also going to be in charge of the San Marino national team.

You know the one, the worst team in the world.

We’ll assume that you’ve got the downloaded leagues here – they can be found in the Steam workshop, and are easily downloaded. Just click ‘subscribe’ on the extended tiers you want.

  • Start by managing both a club and a national team.
  • Assign yourself as manager of Cattolica Calcio San Marino.
  • Assign yourself as manager of San Marino.
  • You may only sign Sammarinese players. If you want to go ultra-hard mode, make this a Youth Academy save so you can only use the players you produce.
  • Try to develop as many youngsters as possible to both develop your club and the national team’s talent pool.
  • Climb the league system and win Serie A and the Champions League.
  • Try to get San Marino’s national team to the World Cup, and then win it.
  • The save doesn’t end until you’ve won all three major trophies.

This is going to be one of the most difficult saves in the game so here are some tips to help.

  • Any money that you do have at the start of the game should be invested into youth coaching. Don’t try to spend on your squad.
  • Focus on bringing through youth but also bring in more experienced players who can work as mentors – there’s nothing wrong with signing players over the age of 30.
  • Don’t worry about international results early on. You’ll lose. A lot. But you won’t get sacked, because it’s San Marino!
  • Make it so that your club tactics are the same as your national team tactics so your players can seamlessly move from one to the other.

Really, this is genuinely going to be one of the most difficult saves any Football Manager player can take on.

It’s going to take years, and you’re going to lose many more games than you win.

That’s just a fact that you need to get behind before you take this on. We wish you all the luck in the world. You’re going to need it.


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