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Turf Wars | Revolució Quadribarrats | Part 3: A Mass Exodus at Sant Andreu
Oriol Ribas was the toast of every Catalan native as he led his beloved Unió Esportiva Sant Andreu to playoff glory and back into the Spanish third-tier Primera Federación. However, he quickly encountered a few challenges ahead of his second season in management.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 11 | Massive Academy Star Sales
Thespa Gunma put their relegation battle behind them to record a top-half finish in J League in 2035, while star academy product Yusuke Ishii became the club’s first graduate to play for Japan. The summer of 2035 saw big moves as Gunma’s all-time record goalscorer Masaya Nishi, who scored 133 in 334 games for the […]
Turf Wars | Revolució Quadribarrats | Part 2: A First FC Barcelona Rivalry
Revolution was afoot in Cataluña as Ultras leader Oriol Ribas was elected as manager of fourth-tier club Unió Esportiva Sant Andreu. The rookie manager was entrusted with the mammoth task of restoring Catalan glory by leading the charge to usurp the mighty FC Barcelona.
Turf Wars | Revolució Quadribarrats | Part 1: A Catalan Revolution
Thousands of people descended on Camp Municipal Narcís Sala ahead of one of the most highly anticipated nights in recent Catalan history. The football culture in Barcelona had been shifting rapidly, as club memberships had increased 600% over the last five years, passionate fans created electrifying stadium atmospheres, and local vendors were completely sold out of replica kits. But this wasn’t due to a surge in support for the club you might be thinking of.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 10 | Gunma’s First Japan International
After enjoying several seasons of success, Thespakusatsu Gunma and Robaato Rasamu came down to earth with a thump as they got drawn into a J1 League relegation battle in 2034. But, 12 months on from a title challenge, they finished the season well to maintain their top-flight status.
Trailblazer | Part 25 | The End of Trailblazer
A strong season back in her homeland of Sweden saw Freja Holm tick the Damallsvenskan title off her list with Malmö FF. That wrapped up an eighth top-tier title of the 11 playable women’s leagues in Football Manager 26, leaving Holm with Australia, Denmark and Germany to tick off.
Trailblazer | Part 24 | Freja Holm Returns Home
Freja Holm finally ended Arsenal and Chelsea’s domination of England’s WSL as she led Manchester City to their first title in 29 years. Now 20 years into her Trailblazer challenge to win the top 11 women’s football leagues, Holm had ticked off seven.
Trailblazer | Part 23 | First Realistic Shot at Defeating Arsenal
Manchester City Women finished as best of the rest behind Arsenal and Chelsea and lost Freja Holm’s second FA Cup Final to Arsenal in 2044. And it was safe to say the Swedish manager was a little sick of the two London clubs’ domination in England.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 9 | Gunma’s First Misfire
Thespakusatsu Gunma recorded a fifth successive record high finish under the tutelage of Robaato Rasamu, who led the club into the Asian Champions League for the first time by finishing 2nd in J1 League in 2033. However, Rasamu was a little concerned about how well his youthful homegrown team would cope with domestic and continental matters.
Trailblazer | Part 22 | Freja Holm Returns To England
Madrid CFF stormed to a goal-hungry maiden Spanish title led by serial title winner Freja Holm in 2043. But, with her sixth of 11 possible domestic titles in the bag, Freja Holm left Madrid with a heavy heart and went in search of her tenth job as a Football Manager.
Trailblazer | Part 21 | Magical Morera Inspires Free-Scoring Madrid CFF
Swedish manager Freja Holm led Madrid Club de Femenino to its first major trophy, lifting the Spanish Cup against city rivals Atlético. An exciting young squad also racked up the club’s highest-ever finish to qualify for the Champions League for the first time. And that gave Holm the challenge of usurping a dominant Real Madrid.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 8 | Surprise J1 League Title Bid
Thespakusatsu Gunma upset all the odds to not only avoid relegation but finish 7th in their first-ever season in the Japanese top tier. Robaato Rasamu was excited about the potential at the club as his promising youngsters continued to deliver.
Trailblazer | Part 20 | Massive Potential in Madrid
Freja Holm rebuilt a Wrexham AFC Women squad to claim a historic Welsh treble and add the Adran Premier title to those won in Italy, Japan, France and USA. A few days on from that success, Holm resigned yet again and went in search of her ninth club.
Trailblazer | Part 19 | Americas Influx in North Wales
A dramatic injury-time winner saw Bay FC claim their maiden NWSL Championship and Freja Holm become the 11th greatest women’s football manager in November 2039. The 49-year-old Swede added the American title to those won in Italy, Japan and France, leaving, in theory, titles in Australia, Denmark, England, Germany, Spain, Sweden and Wales to tick off her Trailblazer challenge.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 7 | A Gunma Golden Generation
A narrow victory saw Thespakusatsu Gunma end their playoff hoodoo to earn their first ever promotion to the top tier of Japanese football in 2031. Now the hard work began for Robaato Rasamu to build a side capable of survival.
Trailblazer | Part 18 | Holm Brings Her Favourite Players to America
Freja Holm brought ageing superstar striker Barbra Banda back to the NWSL in 2038 but it didn’t quite provide the spark that the Swedish manager was hoping for. Her Bay FC side finished in a record-equalling 5th, but finished the season in really poor form. But Holm had her sight set much higher than 5th […]
Trailblazer | Part 17 | Global Superstar Joins American Adventure
Having decided to jump ship from OL Lyonnes, it takes until January 2038 for a job that was interesting and she could actually apply for. And that arrived in the form of an offer from the USA.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 6 | Surviving Board Interventions for Another Playoff Shot
For the second time in 12 months, Thespakusatsu Gunma suffered promotion playoff heartache fresh from recording the best position in club history in 2030. Their overachievement saw manager Robaato Rasamu interviewed by relegated J1 League side Cerezo Osaka, but he remained committed to the Gunma cause.
Trailblazer | Part 16 | Thrilling Six-Way Title Race… With A Twist
An eight-time European champion invites Holm for an interview and swiftly offers her their vacant manager role. So Holm is off to her sixth club in six different countries.
Trailblazer | Part 15 | Moving To Country Number Five
Swedish manager Freja Holm was back on the job hunt after a successful 12 months in Japan, leading Urawa Reds to their first league title in 11 years. That added the Japanese title to the two in Italy, as Holm looked to tick off all 11 playable nations in Football Manager 26.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 5 | Cruel Penalty Pain
Just six minutes separated Thespa Gunma from a surprise promotion to the Japanese top tier. However, the J2 League’s silly rule that the home side gets promoted if a playoff final is drawn meant they missed out, which, in hindsight, was probably for the best given they’d just recorded the club’s record high finish.
Trailblazer | Part 14 | Freja Holm’s Japanese Challenge
After wrapping up consecutive Serie A successes, including an invincible campaign in 2036, Freja Holm resigned as manager of Fiorentina and went in search of a new challenge. Upon resigning, very few opportunities were available, but Holm applied for a vacancy in Japan. And she was quickly given the chance to move to a new continent.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 4 | Transfer Errors Before Gunma Hit J2 Flying
The unfancied youthful side of Thespa Gunma were the surprise package of Japan’s J3 League as they snuck into the playoffs and put in two huge performances to seal promotion to the second tier.
Trailblazer | Part 13 | Italian Media Herald the Rise of “Holm-Ball”
Freja Holm went from having zero major honours in seven years of football management to winning three in her first season at Fiorentina in 2032/33.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 3 | Takeover Precedes Gunma Playoff Push
Thespa Gunma’s young stars achieved a solid top-half finish in the longest football season known to man, as a 16-month J3 League campaign finally ended in May. That overperformance saw managed Robaato Rasamu field interview requests from multiple J2 sides.
Trailblazer | Part 12 | Freja Holm Moves To Italy
After three-and-a-half seasons in Sweden and four-and-a-half seasons in England, Freja Holm had done a great job rebuilding the fortunes of Alingsås IF and Everton Women. However, the dominance of Arsenal and Chelsea left the 42-year-old feelling a little jaded with life in England. So, when Italian side Fiorentina came calling, she jumped at the new opportunity.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 2 | Young Stars Shine Despite Long First Season in Japan
Robaato Rasamu found himself in the midst of a 16-month second season in Japan, relying on an extremely inexperienced squad. After enduring a painful J2/J3 Special Tournament, the rookie Japanese manager was slowly starting to get improved performances out of his young Thespa Gunma side.
Trailblazer | Part 11 | Everton’s Big Day At Wembley
Freja Holm led Everton Women to a strong 4th-place finish in the Women’s Super League in 2031, but her team was still well behind the invincible Arsenal and very strong Chelsea. And, realistically, Holm knew they had no chance of catching that pair. Everton’s hopes weren’t helped by losing star centre back Andisiwe Mbane, who […]
Wonderkid Factory | Part 1 | Wonderkid Factory Comes To J3 League
The more he watched football, the more Rasamu became obsessed with the idea of developing young players to maximise their talent – largely fuelled by the Class of 92 being at the heart of Manchester United conquering England and Europe under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Trailblazer | Part 10 | Arsenal Drop 4 Points in 2 Seasons!
Everton Women enjoyed a massive improvement in Swedish manager Freja Holm’s first full season at Goodison Park. But, despite having plenty of exciting young talent at her fingertips, not everything was quite so rosy at Everton.
Trailblazer | Part 9 | Arsenal and Chelsea Obliterate WSL
The fighting spirit of Swedish manager Freja Holm led Everton out of a dire start to the Barclays Women’s Super League and to comfortable survival in 2029. But the 39-year-old had ambitions well beyond simply surviving as she looked to freshen up the Everton squad.
Trailblazer | Part 8 | A Massive Opportunity in England
Leading a semi-professional club into European football’s biggest competition doesn’t go unnoticed, eventually. That was the case in November 2028 as, on the back of taking Alingsås IF into the Champions League, competing in the Swedish title race and earning her Continental A licence, it looked like Freja Holm may be departing her homeland. Four […]
Trailblazer | Part 7 | Semi-Pro to Champions League
Until as recently as a few months ago, nobody had heard of a little club in southwest Sweden called Alingsås IF. But that all changed as manager Freja Holm was quickly becoming the talk of Swedish football, having led the club to a 2nd-place finish on the final day of the 2027 season and won […]
Trailblazer | Part 6 | Goal Machine Carol Baiana Inspires Potential Swedish Fairytale
A flying start to the Damallsvenskan campaign, including beating the holders and winning 5-1 at last season’s 3rd-place finishers, saw Alingsås IF looking good to survive upon their return to the top tier.
Trailblazer | Part 5 | Alingsås Return To Damsallsvenskan
The reputation of fledgling manager Freja Holm was on the rise after she led Alingsås IF to an immediate promotion from Sweden’s second tier. She now faced a tough test to keep her team in the top tier.
Trailblazer | Part 4 | Chasing Elitettan Success At Alingsås IF
Dropping into Elitettan had reversed the fortunes of Freja Holm early in the rookie manager’s career. Having won one out of seven top-tier games, the 35-year-old Swede had led Alingsås IF to an unbeaten start 11 games into her first full season.
Trailblazer | Part 3 | Rebuilding After Relegation
Rookie manager Freja Holm was handed the unenviable task of managing Swedish side Alingsås IF, who hadn’t won in 19 league matches, in her first role as a Football Manager. Unsurprisingly, she wasn’t able to pull off a miraculous survival, but did manage to pick up her first win in the final game of the […]
Tardini Tales | Part 10 | Mateo Pellegrino, Parma’s All-Time Record League Goalscorer
Parma just missed out on defending their maiden Serie A title to a relentless Inter Milan in 2029, but manager Alessio Rinaldi remained delighted with the progress of his young side.
Tardini Tales | Part 9 | Alajbegovic Breaks Serie A Assists Record
n exciting young Parma Calcio side topped Serie A at the halfway mark of their maiden title defence and was looking good to reach the Champions League knockout rounds.
Trailblazer | Part 2 | Straight Into An Impossible Relegation Battle
Freja Holm walked into the world of football management as an inexperienced coach with minimal badges and a football career cut short by injury. As such, the 35-year-old Swede was expecting a long wait before finding her first club in women’s football.
Trailblazer | Part 1 | Introducing the Trailblazer Journeywoman Challenge
For as long as she could remember, football had been the heartbeat of Freja Holm’s life. Growing up in Umeå, the largest city in northern Sweden, in the late 1990s, Freja spent every waking second of every weekend playing football with her brothers and their friends.
Tardini Tales | Part 8 | Parma’s First Title Defence
An unbelievable season saw Parma Calcio claim their maiden Serie A title in dramatic fashion, finishing level with Inter Milan on points then beating them at their own ground 3-2 in a title playoff.
Tardini Tales | Part 7 | Could One Penalty Decide A Title Race?
Parma Calcio came into 2028 looking well in the hunt for European qualification for the third season in a row and having guaranteed knockout football in the Europa League.
Tardini Tales | Part 6 | Wonderkid Signings Bolster Parma Attack
Two seasons under the tutelage of boyhood Parma Calcio supporter Alessio Rinaldi had seen the Emilia-Romagna club enjoy back-to-back top six finishes. The challenge now was for the young manager to refresh a squad that he felt was in danger of becoming stale.
Tardini Tales | Part 5 | Overperforming Parma Shock FC Bayern
Parma Calcio endured a tricky start to Alessio Rinaldi’s second season in football management. But, despite giving up countless shots per match, they’d just about snuck a few results and went on a solid run before Christmas.
Tardini Tales | Part 4 | Our Trusty Suzuki
Boyhood Parma Calcio supporter Alessio Rinaldi led his hometown club to the second-best finish in its history, as I Crociati finished in an incredible 3rd place in Serie A in 2026. That meant Rinaldi now faced a massive challenge to bolster a threadbare squad for an unexpected step up to the Champions League.
Tardini Tales | Part 3 | Parma Battle Italy’s Big Boys
Parma had made a surprisingly good start in Serie A under the tutelage of new man and boyhood supporter Alessio Rinaldi. I Crociati sat in an impressive 4th place after 12 games, a mighty 15 points clear of the relegation zone, despite having a threadbare squad and no transfers.
Tardini Tales | Part 2 | A Surprisingly Strong Start
Boyhood Parma Calcio supporter Alessio Rinaldi walked through the staff entrance at Stadio Ennio Tardini feeling on top of the world, fresh from being appointed the Emilia-Romagna club’s new manager. However, he was quickly brought back down to earth with a bump.
Tardini Tales | Part 1 | Mission: Make People Fall in Love With Parma Again
27 years on from joining the club’s academy, 41-year-old Alessio Rinaldi put pen to paper to become the 96th permanent manager of Parma Calcio.
Football Manager 26: My Save Plans
It feels like a long old time since I wrote one of these articles but, now that we know that Football Manager 26 is very much a thing and will be with us in less than a month, it’s time to start thinking about save plans for the next 12 months.