5 Alternative money making schemes in Football Manager 2010

The recent transfer window has just passed us by, lacking in the excitement that has caught us in previous windows. Lack of money flowing through the clubs this year could be one cause of the quiet activity. Around £30million was through passed English clubs this year, compared to £170 million just last year. In times of financial trouble though how can your Football Manager side stay in the black?

1. Play the market

Within Football, the most valuable commodity are footballers, if you play the transfer market well and mine talent effectively you can create a sustainable business model that will help bring cash and success.

Free transfers can be a quick buck, when contracts are expiring look for those players who have value and snap them up as soon as possible, starting your search in December. These players could spend a few weeks on your bench or on loan before you can sell them for a 90% profit.  Look at your reserve side as a get rich quick scheme sitting on your assets ready to be shipped out. Although do be warned that this tactic isn’t something you should do on a massive scale as their is a danger of upsetting squad morale.

Developing a good youth policy can have certain financial gains, it is inevitably that not all these players are going to make it into your first team. But if they are developed well you will be able to be produce good enough players for sides below yours, selling young players on at a profit. Plan well, stick in clauses to the transfer negotiations that will see players still making you money long after they have left the club, as important as quick cash is long term sustainability can bring you longer term success. This is a tactic also used by smaller clubs who don’t have the budget to spend big on players, good youth academies have been the main source of long term income for the likes of Ajax, Leeds and Everton.

2. Season friendlies

Don’t just limit yourself to pre-season friendlies or as just a way to get your players fit for a season ahead. For smaller sides they can be a good way of making money. Spain and Italy have huge gaps during Christmas, many other nations hold their pre-seasons during the winter months. Great times to hit those sides up when you have a gap in your fixtures. You don’t have to field a strong side, if you are worried about injuries. But getting fans to your ground can be a nice Christmas present for yourself.

More reading: Friendlies, the tactical playground

3. Buy back clauses

Buy back clauses can be a way to make a small amounts of cash quickly. You have a few young players who you are not sure whether will make it in your side or not. Sell them with a buy back clause, you will get cash and save on wages. If they make it great you can buy him back and avoid huge rises in value. If not that is quick money in the bank. Also check if your club has anyone on a buy back clause already set in the game. In Football Manager 2009, Barragán clause allowed Liverpool to snap him up for £475k and he was often put into the first team straight away. But just like point number one, get someone back cheap enough and sell them on again!

4. Contract negotiations

Don’t just stick with the contracts that you have already got your players on, don’t just cave in to demands straight away. If you keep your players happy they are always going to be more likely to stay even if you offer them less wages. The small clauses, pay rises and sign on fees can really eat into your budget until it is too late for you to go back on that 5 year deal you just gave your backup striker. If you negotiate with your lower league sides and try and get deals below their current contracts even if they still have a couple of years left, it can give you a pretty reasonable amount of cash to spend elsewhere.

5. Loaning out your reserves

Reserve players, all they do is sit around eating up your wage budget. Obviously they are more then that, but for players that you want to keep on the books but are not getting first team action can be put to use elsewhere. Careful planning can allow you to send out players, making savings on your wage bill as well as netting yourself a little bit of cash in fees if you aren’t going to require the player as backup for the first team squad. You also get the added bonus of the players grabbing first team experience, very important when developing your sides.

Share your money making tips

Leave your comments below. How do you save or make money in Football Manager 2010? Would you rather spend the frugal Wenger way or would you look out for the giants of Europe as Real Madrid would?