Things are starting to look better for Football Manager 26. Sports Interactive just shared their update plans for 2026 and beyond. After the recent December update, the studio has already started working on future patches, which will be focused on stability, UI, and longer-term improvements that the fans have been asking for.
Updates will resume sometime in mid-January with a patch every two to three weeks. The recent patches have improved performance, polish, and stability since launch. Sure, the game is nowhere near where fans want it to be, but there has been progress. SI mentioned this in the post and acknowledged that some issues remain and are now top priorities going forward.
What’s Coming Next For Football Manager 26
According to the post, their main area of focus will be the user interface (finally). We are all aware of how problematic FM26’s UI is — it’s buggy, inconsistent, and a nightmare to deal with. Fortunately, SI also acknowledges this.
In particular, there are ongoing concerns from some new and existing players around various aspects of the UI and navigation, and we’re taking all feasible steps to improve both, as we have done already with the half-time and post-match screens in the latest PC/Mac update.
The other thing that they will be focusing on in the next few patches is immersion. They are working on pass maps and other areas to make the game feel more immersive and connected.
We’re also rolling out tweaks to media and additional features to improve immersion. Pass maps are nearly there, and we’re also looking at more areas that will enhance that ‘connected world’ feeling.
They also talked about upgrading International Management after the 2026 World Cup qualifiers at the end of March. Plus, they will also be adding the updated assets soon after.
Following the completion of the FIFA World Cup 2026
Qualifiers at the end of March, an improved International Management module will follow thereafter in a free update, with the remaining official tournament assets likely coming later, following the release of final tournament kits. Our normal Winter Transfer updates (Feb & Mar) will dovetail with the above updates, with exact dates to be confirmed in due course.
Apart from that, Sports Interactive also teased future announcements around additional game modes. While details are being kept under wraps for now, the studio confirmed that they are planning to add additional game modes to FM26 next year.
We are also aware of recent community discussions about additional game modes. While we’re not ready to reveal details just yet, you can expect a separate announcement on future initiatives shortly, which signals our ongoing commitment to further development in this area.
Overall, the 2026 roadmap for FM26 does sound promising. They are finally moving to fix the UI, which has been the major point of complaint. If they can somehow fix the UI, make it consistent, and not the turd it currently is, then FM26 will be a much better game. Plus, additional game modes and improvements to immersion sound intriguing, but we will have to wait to see what the actual “improvements” are. At least, we now know that they are aware of the complaints and are trying to fix them.
