CM 01/02 turns 20: the game that hooked a generation is still alive

Hugo Pinheiro, one of the legends of the game

Some games define an era. And then there is Championship Manager 01/02, which defined an entire generation.

On October 12, 2021, it turned 20. It was very probably the football simulator that hooked the most people: young and old, those who played it on release and those who only discovered it years later.

Index

Few graphics, lots of addiction

CM 01/02 had no 3D pitches or players running across the screen. It had text and statistics, and that was enough to tell who was out of form, who you should sell and who was worth signing.

The following editions, first as CM and then as Football Manager after Sports Interactive split from Eidos, brought much more: player detail, mind games like real managers play, on-pitch movement. But they also took away a little of that pleasure of rattling through game after game at a good pace. No wonder so many people keep coming back to it.

And the truth is that CM 01/02 is still alive. More than twenty people update it every year, and those updates can be downloaded from the forum champman0102. With today’s computers, the game asks practically nothing of your machine.

The legends

Tsigalko (who even had a trial at Marítimo), Sergey Nikiforenko, Julius Aghahowa, Mark Kerr… These are names that belong in the memory book of everyone who played, or still plays, CM 01/02.

Here in Portugal we had Tó Madeira, a ruthless goalscorer capable of carrying a team on his back, often with more than 50 or 60 goals a season. In reality, he never played at senior level: he got no further than Gouveia’s youth teams, and he put himself in the game, since he was a database contributor responsible precisely for the CD Gouveia squad.

And he was not the only Portuguese player full of potential. Many played in what was then the II Divisão B and reached the top in no time: Hugo Pinheiro, João Paiva or Pedras were signed by the best clubs, at home and abroad, and became tied to great feats.

The eleven of promises that fell by the wayside

We put together an eleven of Portuguese players who were big prospects in CM 01/02 but never reached stardom in real football. In a 4-4-2, of course.

Position:	Nome:	Club in the game:	Info:	Curiosities
Goalkeepers	Hugo Pinheiro	Marinhense	Marinhense's Sporting Director; he was once coached by Rui Vitória.	Went back to Marinhense in 17/18 to play, and is now the Sporting Director
Left Back	Nuno Rodrigues	Espinho	Retired, with spells at Badajoz and in Cypriot and Angolan football
Right Back	Bruno Lucas	Imortal	Retired, Pampilhosa, Espinho, Atlético CP and Sintrense
Centre Back	Bocas	Sesimbra	?
Centre Back	Brás	Marinhense	19 seasons at Marinhense
Left Winger	Lourenço	Sporting B	Played for Belenenses, Leiria, Setúbal, Panionios, Moreirense and Farense, had a short stop in Romania but came back to Portugal and ended his career at Atlético	One of Cristiano Ronaldo's best friends. Coached CD Fátima last season
Right Winger	Felipe Oliveira	Chelsea	Probably one of the good prospects in Portuguese football; played for Marítimo, SC Braga, Videoton and Anorthosis, ending his career at Sepsi in Romania
Central midfielder	Ednilson	Benfica	Another of the big prospects, with spells at Benfica, Gil Vicente, OFI, Partizan and Dinamo Tbilisi
Central midfielder	Rodrigo Brasao (one of them :D)	Litex	Retired, from Bulgaria to the AF Lisboa district leagues	Uncle of David Brazão, an under-21 youngster at 'Os Belenenses'
Forward	João Paiva	Sporting B	Retired, with spells in Cypriot and Swiss football
Forward	Tó Madeira	Gouveia	?	Tó Madeira is only available in the unpatched version. He doesn't actually exist and was created by one of the game's contributors, António Lopes, who played for the Gouveia juniors but never played professionally.

Twenty simulated years

To mark the date, we simulated twenty years of play, right up to October 12, 2021. Here are some images from that simulation and, if you want some fun, you can download the savegame here.