In 2019 we told you about German Sepp Hedel and his 333 seasons. Then, in 2023, we covered how Pole Paweł Siciński took the record from him with 528 years. Well, the story was not over. Hedel never stopped playing and, on 13 June 2025, Guinness World Records confirmed that he once again holds the longest Football Manager save in the world: 535 in-game years.
Sepp Hedel, the record holder (Image: Guinness World Records / Football Manager, via SPORTbible)
Seven years apart
The new record was set in Giebelstadt, Bavaria. So he beat Siciński’s 528 years by just seven in-game years. But when you have spent half a millennium in the same save, seven years is next to nothing.
Also, according to Guinness, Hedel played for more than 146 real days to get there. In other words, almost five full months in front of the screen, if it were done in one go.
How the record has changed hands since 2018
A two-man fight
In fact, the record has been a duel between Hedel and Siciński for almost seven years. First, in December 2018, Pole Michał Leniec entered Guinness with 221 seasons. Then, in 2019, Hedel passed him with 333. But in 2022 Siciński reached 416 and took the record, which he stretched to 528 years in 2023. Finally, in 2025, Hedel went back in front.
Five clubs in five centuries
However, the most impressive part is the loyalty. In 535 years, Hedel managed just five clubs: FC United of Manchester, Bengaluru FC, Hereford, LA Galaxy and Tai Po of Hong Kong.
It all started in December 2017, when he went to work in Africa and FM became his evening companion. So he picked FC United, the club founded by Manchester United fans in protest at the Glazer family. He won his first Premier League in 2037, after six second places, and his first Champions League the same year, against Atlético Madrid.
After 50 years in Manchester, he moved to India with Bengaluru. Then, in 2277, he returned to England with Hereford. Funnily enough, his biggest rival became FC United itself, which he had left so strong that he only beat them in 2289.
Giebelstadt, Bavaria, where the record was set. Photo: Dr. Reiner Düren (RedPiranha), CC BY-SA 3.0 DE, via Wikimedia Commons
The numbers we know
The full numbers for the new record have never been published. Still, those from 2019, when he reached 333 seasons without holidays or simulations, were already crazy:
- Matches: 15,678, with a 71% win rate.
- Goals scored: 42,672.
- Trophies: close to a thousand.
- Signings: 684 players, for £9.41 billion.
Plus, one regen made history in the save: Fernando Robles, with 427 goals in 587 games.
What about the Portuguese?
Before all this, Portuguese player Paulo Santarém Andrade reached 164 seasons at Bustelo. It looks small now, but back then it was one of the longest known saves. Still, to put Portugal back on top, you would now need around 536 years.
Our take
Some records impress through talent and others through stubbornness. This one is clearly the second kind, and that is why we love it. After all, almost all of us have dropped a save after two seasons because the new game came out. So, with FM27 arriving on 10 November, the question remains: will Hedel switch games, or does the 2017 save still have a few more centuries left?
Sources
Read also