Sports Interactive make major Football Manager 25 announcement after delays to game

An official statement has confirmed the disappointing news that Football Manager 25 has been canceled.

Ever since the official trailer was released in September 2024, fans have been eagerly awaiting the latest release in the beloved Football Manager series, FM25.

The game was initially due to be released in early November but was delayed twice, initially to later in the same month but then to March.

However, with no new updates since the second delay was announced in October, fans had feared the worst, and now it has been confirmed that game has been officially cancelled.

On Friday morning, Football Manager developer Sports Interactive released a statement announcing that they would not be releasing the game and instaed turn their focus to FM26, which is expected to arrive later this year.

An official statement from the company reads: "Sports Interactive regret to inform that, following extensive internal discussion and careful consideration with SEGA, we have made the difficult decision to cancel Football Manager 25 and shift our focus to the next release.

"For the large numbers of you who pre-ordered FM25, we thank you enormously for your trust and support – we’re very sorry to have let you down. Please see the FAQs below on obtaining your refund."

The developer had previously promised to give fans an update on the game's release in January but were instead forced to wait until after publisher Sega released their latest financial results.

"We know this will come as a huge disappointment, especially given that the release date has already moved twice, and you have been eagerly anticipating the first gameplay reveal," the statement added.

"We can only apologise for the time it has taken to communicate this decision. Today was the earliest date that we could issue this statement.

"We have always prided ourselves on delivering the best value for money games that bring you countless hours of enjoyment, that feel worth every moment and every penny you spend. With the launch of FM25 we set out to create the biggest technical and visual advancement in the series for a generation, laying the building blocks for a new era."

Image credit: Sports Interactive

Some fans had suggested that, although it may not be as groundbreaking and different as promised, Sports Interatcie should still release the game or, failing that, launch an update for Football Mnagaer 24 with fresh player data, but both options are not possible.

Sports Interactive confirmed: "We could have pressed on, released FM25 in its current state, and fixed things down the line - but that’s not the right thing to do. We were also unwilling to go beyond a March release as it would be too late in the football season to expect players to then buy another game later in the year.

"Through the cancellation, every effort is now focused on ensuring that our next release achieves our goal and hits the quality level we all expect. We will update you on how we are progressing with that as soon as we are able to do so."