Fenech

At the moment I am unable to give you an exact figure but I can confirm that the final figure will be between 2500-3000. Due the game including every single legend / Star from 1844-2024, then only true legends can be included so when we talk about a final figure of let's say 2800, you are talking 2800 true legends of the game from 1844-2024. I won't be including a shortlist with them all on, however there will be a face pack with all their faces, and prior to release, I will be releasing images of the squads, and all the legend players / managers in each squad so you will have a fair idea of who is in each of the teams / ages etc and that should give everyone a good head start to begin creating your own shortlists.

Q: So, if I understand correctly, the main difference between the previous versions and this year's is that clubs now feature the same squad for 2024, along with new "wonderkid" legendary players. Is that accurate? Will the current players remain in the squad alongside the new legends? Not Quite. The main difference this year is that the squads will not be identical to the 2024 squads, and they won’t just be filled with wonderkids. Instead, the database will feature a balanced range of legendary players aged between 14 and 34, depending on when they were born. So, not all legends are considered "wonderkids." The ages are assigned to reflect the player’s real historical timeline. To avoid overloading clubs with too many players, the game will remove players who are not needed and don't qualify as legends or stars and make them available for free transfers. This allows lower-league clubs to sign surplus players. Additionally, some legendary players may be moved to clubs they played for earlier or later in their careers to ensure balance and avoid squad congestion. The end result will be balanced squads filled with legendary players of varying ages, reflecting both reality and history. This approach maintains a more authentic historical progression throughout the game. Whilst delivering on a guarantee that if a player is at a club, I guarantee that they were at that club at that age in their real careers. Therefore there will be some legends available on free transfers e.g. if they only played a club which now today, no longer exists, in any shape or form, then the only place for those few select legends will be on the free market. Q: You also referenced 'the return of the best managers and chairmen' in the previous versions. Does this element carry over into this year’s version? If so, where will the current managers be placed in this database? Yes, the feature of including legendary managers and chairmen carries over into this year's version as well! There will actually be more legendary managers than before, and they’ll be recreated to manage just as they did in reality. For example, Don Revie will be back at Leeds United, and Brian Clough at Nottingham Forest, with their intense rivalry intact. These legendary managers will have their original tactical preferences, tendencies, and coaching attributes, meticulously recreated to reflect how they actually operated during their careers. The same level of detail applies to chairmen and other staff, with a strong emphasis on authenticity. You'll also see more faces and assistants for these legendary figures. They will be placed at the clubs where they had managed for a number of years and achieved their finest managerial moments. However if another manager has done better at that club or only managed at that club, they may also be moved on an earlier or later stage in their career to accommodate as many managers / assistants / chairman as possible in the game. Once again I guarantee that if a manager is at a club, they were at that club, at that age. "Additionally, if Pep Guardiola were to return as a player, who would take over as Manchester City's new manager?" Pep is 17 years old at Barcelona. Manchester City's manager is: Joe Mercer Manchester City's chairman is: Albert Alexander. Here is a photo of Albert Jnr with Joe Mercer and Big Mal (Malcolm Allison) who is the manager of Crystal Palace.

Yes, my data file will be compatible with most other types of updates, such as league updates, real name fixes, or skin mods. However, there will be compatibility issues with data update files that move legends into managerial or staff roles or track their status changes. For example, in the case of Ruud van Nistelrooy, if another mod updates him to a coach or manager while my database changes him back into a player, this will indeed cause conflicts. My file would revert Ruud to his younger self as a player, while the other update might keep him as a non-player, potentially leading to duplicates or mismatches. The best approach is to avoid using my mod with any update that tracks such changes, particularly those affecting transfers or staff/player status. Fortunately, by the time my database is released, most official transfer updates will already be done, so there’s less risk of overlap. After all, why choose Ruud as a coach when you could have him as a 17-year-old youth prospect at FC Den Bosch? In short, it’s important to pick the mods that suit your preference and ensure they don't overlap with player status changes.

Age Adjustment for Active Stars: If players like Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland qualify as legends or stars, they will follow my specific approach of age reduction. Every legend or star, regardless of whether they are currently active, will be treated equally in terms of starting at the appropriate age based on when they reached key milestones in their careers. For active players who do not meet the 'legend' or 'star' criteria, they will remain untouched and retain their current ages in the database. Risks with Recreating 'Retired Person' Profiles: When a player is marked as retired in FM, their original profile becomes unusable, as their ID is reset to 0. Once FM retires a player, the only options are to either keep their retired profile or delete it and recreate them from scratch. If SI (Sports Interactive) removes a player entirely from the database, then full recreation from scratch is necessary. This process poses a risk when minor database updates occur, as changes could affect previously recreated profiles. However, FM typically doesn't release any more database updates after the March Winter Update. To minimize risk, I begin reproduction after this major update, ensuring that no further changes will impact the work. Over time, fewer players need recreation as more legends and stars are retired or removed, and once a player is recreated from scratch, any future adjustments are minimal. Facepack for Legends: Along with the release of the database update, I will also be providing a comprehensive facepack that includes all the legends, stars, managers, and even non-managers. This ensures that users will not need to rely on other sources for facepacks, especially since many existing ones feature older versions of the legends.

Great Questions! "Do you maintain the original FM24 database with current players, clubs, and history, and simply add legendary players to play alongside modern ones?" Yes, I maintain the integrity of the original FM24 database, including current players, clubs, and their established history. My approach is to preserve existing data as it is, without altering the history of players or clubs that has not been touched. When it comes to adding legendary figures such as players, coaches, managers, chairmen, and directors who were not originally included in the FM24 database, I do so without modifying any existing profiles. I would simply edit the existing profile and not have to recreate a completely new one. If these figures are already present but retired in the database, I recreate their profiles from scratch and remove any outdated retired profiles to ensure accuracy. This way, the database retains its original structure and history while being enriched with legendary figures to enhance the gaming experience. "Or do you recreate the legends and reset the game to a historical period?" The database spans from 1844 to 2024, encompassing the entire history of football. I do not reset the game to any specific historical period. Instead, the database includes every legend and star from this extensive timeframe, provided they meet the following criteria: They qualify as 'A Legend or a Star.' They have been thoroughly researched using sources such as FIFA, PES, UEFA, FM, media, fan forums, and online community websites to ensure accurate reproduction of their playing or managing attributes. They have undergone rigorous in-game testing to confirm that their performance aligns closely with their historical reality. Only after ensuring these criteria are met will a player or manager be integrated into the database. Thus, players from any year, including those from 2024, are included, and the database reflects the full spectrum of football history without resetting to any particular period. "For players currently active in 2023, will their ages be reduced, or will they retain their 2023 age? If so, how would you handle legendary players and stars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Erling Haaland, and Kylian Mbappe? Would their ages be decreased in comparison to current active players?" To ensure the database remains historically accurate while including current players, we follow a specific approach: Age Based on Historical Accuracy: Player Ages range from 14-34 and Players will start at an age appropriate to the year they were born. For example, if a player was born between 1800 and 1810, they would start the game at 34 years old, adjusting accordingly for their birth decade. This means that players like Cristiano Ronaldo, born on February 5, 1985, would start at an age reflective of his early years in professional football. Club and Age Considerations: Players are included in the database at the age they were when they first joined a club where they played at least 30 professional games. This means Cristiano Ronaldo would start the game at 18 years old, reflecting his debut with Manchester United in 2003. (I guarantee that if a player is at a club, they are at the club at the exact age that they joined that club) Top Leagues Requirement: Legends and stars are placed in the top two leagues of their respective countries to ensure they are easily locatable and accurately represented, avoiding the need to search through lower leagues. Therefore they may have to be 'older' if e.g. they only joined a club in the top 2 divisions of their respective league and played at least 30 professional games at that age. Therefore, while the ages of current active players might appear decreased in comparison to older players, this approach ensures that the historical accuracy of their careers is maintained. "Lastly, when recreating legendary players from 'Retired' or 'Non-Player' status, would their awards and career history be erased? For example, if you recreate Ronaldo at age 20, would his Ballon d'Or achievements still be intact or reset?" Please note that if a player is 'officially retired' in the database they would be deleted and recreated from scratch. If they are a Non Player, then we simply edit the existing profiles. When recreating legendary players who are either officially retired or editing currently non-active players / managers in the database, their awards and career history would indeed be reset. If a player like Cristiano Ronaldo is recreated at an earlier stage in his career, such as at age 20, his achievements, such as Ballon d'Or awards, would not carry over. One thing that would carry over is their 'preferred player moves' The reason for this reset is to ensure historical accuracy. At age 20, Ronaldo had not yet earned those accolades, so it would be inaccurate to include them in his profile. By resetting his achievements to match his career stage, we maintain the integrity and realism of the database.

Thanks for checking in! At the moment, I can't give an exact percentage, but I'm getting closer to the finish line. The majority of the groundwork is done, and now it’s about refining and finalizing the details, along with testing to make sure everything runs smoothly. Rest assured, once I have a clearer picture, I’ll be providing more updates. Thanks again for your patience and enthusiasm!

Hi Everyone, I want to explain an important concept regarding tactics and their evolution over the years. Understanding this is crucial if you're aiming to create an authentic legends game. Many historical records, including those on Wikipedia, may not accurately reflect the tactical nuances of early football. For example, let's consider the 1930 World Cup final between Uruguay and Argentina, particularly the winning team, Uruguay, whose players will be featured in this legends game. Here’s the lineup for Uruguay as listed on Wikipedia: GK: Enrique Ballestrero FB: José Nasazzi (c) FB: Ernesto Mascheroni RH: José Andrade CH: Lorenzo Fernández LH: Álvaro Gestido OR: Pablo Dorado IR: Héctor Scarone CF: Héctor Castro IL: Pedro Cea OL: Santos Iriarte While this formation is often described as a 2-3-5, the roles and positions were quite different from what we understand today. Full Backs (Nasazzi and Mascheroni): Back then, full backs weren’t the same as today’s left and right backs. They were more like center-backs who might cover the flanks when necessary. They had defensive duties across the back line, not just on the sides. It meant 'fully at the back' not full backs like we think of today. If you go onto wikipedia it will describe them as a right back or a left back, this is not the case at all. There were no right backs or left backs at that stage, they were centrebacks who covered the right or left side of the defensive area of the pitch so if they were back playing today, they would be centre backs with left side or right side preferences. Half-Backs (RH, CH, LH): The “Centre Half” wasn’t a central defender like in modern times but more of a defensive midfielder or early sweeper, covering central areas and helping in defense. The Right and Left Halves were similar to today’s defensive midfielders, who also had responsibilities in wide midfield areas. Inside Forwards (IR, IL) and Wingers (OR, OL): Inside forwards played closer to what we’d now call an attacking midfielder, supporting the central striker and dropping back to assist in midfield. Wingers were true wide players, similar to today’s, but inside forwards didn’t operate as wide players—they stayed near the central attacking areas. Strikers (CF): The center forwards were strikers, a role that remains largely unchanged. In reality, what is often called a 2-3-5 formation was more like a 2-3-2-3 or 2-3-2-2-1, with fluid roles and responsibilities that covered broad areas of the pitch rather than fixed positions.

I'm really sorry to hear that your work was stolen and re-uploaded without your permission. I can only imagine how frustrating and disheartening that must have been after all the time and effort you put into it. Protecting our creations in this digital age is a real challenge, and I completely understand your decision to keep your files to yourself. If I do find a way to better protect files from being re-uploaded or used for profit, I'll definitely share it with you. It’s a shame that such measures are necessary, but it’s important that we safeguard the integrity of our work. Thank you for your kind words and support. I truly appreciate the time and dedication you’ve also put into the community. Let’s hope we can both continue to enjoy creating and sharing our passion, despite these challenges. Wishing you all the best as well!

It's a tough one. I wouldn't want to set any expectations until I am sure. So the short answer is no.

Thank you for sharing your perspective and experience as an FM Editor. I really appreciate your concern and advice. It's true that maintaining the integrity of such a project can be challenging, especially when others may not give proper credit or misuse the work. This concern is one of the main reasons for the gap in releases, and I only wanted to bring it back when I could see a significant benefit to doing so. Charging for access to created content and asking for donations on the forum is prohibited, whether that's through platforms like Patreon or PayPal. However, my passion for creating the Ultimate Legends Database has always been driven by a desire to share this unique experience with the community. While I understand the benefits of requiring payment, I believe in keeping this project free and accessible to everyone who shares a love for football history. That said, I will be carefully managing the distribution to ensure it reaches the right audience and to protect the integrity of the work. The file will not be uploaded to any public site, and I will take steps to prevent it from being re-uploaded, shared on other forums, or used for profit. While charging for access to created content is prohibited here, and I fully respect the forum's rules, if someone is interested in obtaining the database once it’s ready, I’ll let them know what is required via DM. Ultimately, I reserve the right to refuse to share it. Your support and understanding mean a lot, and I’m grateful for the encouragement.

Well, it's been 10 years since the original release and 5 years since the last edition and as you can imagine, a lot has changed in that time. Now this is a massive update. So if I released it now, it would NOT be ready and therefore I would not consider it to be amazing, it will only be amazing once it is finished to my satisfaction and I never release anything that is an inch less than what it can be. The reason that it is not ready is because of the number of years it has been and amount of improvements that can now be made are significant enough to give me the drive to want to release it again. So, it is a huge update and while it is not ready today, I would think it will be ready in the not too distant future. But it will be amazing, only when it is ready... Yes I am sure it would be really good right now, but really good is not something that I can accept. If that makes sense.

I doubt it will be that long.

Sorry to disappoint, hopefully the wait will be rewarded. What can I say? It's going to be amazing.

I don't want to put an EST time until I am able to give an accurate picture of when that will be. I don't release until I am happy with it.

No, sorry I won't release until it is ready and I have very high standards so unfortunately there is a bit longer to wait, All I can say is that waiting will be worthwhile.