What are the best teams to manage in FM24? The best teams aren’t necessarily those with the biggest bank balances. Manchester City, Tottenham, Real Madrid, and Al-Ittihad in the Saudi Pro League (who aren’t in the game without downloading custom databases) have eye-watering budgets, but where’s the fun in taking a title-ready team and winning every piece of silverware in one season?
Our list of the Football Manager 2024 best teams to manage brings some of football’s most interesting stories in world football together. Fallen giants, far-flung new leagues like the Saudi Pro League, and surprising transfer budgets await in your next Football Manager 2024 save. If you want to make your save a little bit more difficult, check out our guide on the best Football Manager 2024 challenge saves to give yourself a tactical headache.
Here are the best teams to manage in Football Manager 2024:
- Luton Town
- FC Osaka
- Ajax
- Brighton
- Inter Miami
- Santos FC
Luton Town
- Transfer budget $2,500,000
- Wage budget £1,158,000 p/w ($25,000 to spend)
A standard save for Football Manager players, where you take the newly-promoted minnow in the Premier League and try to keep them up, before setting your sights on growth. The task with Luton is big – they were playing non-league football in 2013-14. You’re not stuck with non-league players though, with 12 summer signings to get to work with, including Ross Barkley who should pull strings in attacking midfield. Regardless, with a stacked Premier League and a tiny ground bringing in little by way of ticket income, it’ll be no easy job to keep Luton winning.
FC Osaka
- Transfer budget $47,500
- Wage budget $30,800 p/w ($400 available)
The J League has made its long-awaited licensed debut in FM24, and FC Osaka down in J3 League is our pick for a zero-to-hero project. FC Osaka were promoted in 2023 from the fourth tier for the first time, making them one of the lowest-ranked teams available in the J League. The club is a new project, founded in 1996, and is a blank canvas to build a dynasty. Striker Gustavo Santos represents the best talent in the side, but you’ll need to maximize the transfer and wage budget to reinforce the team.
Ajax
- Transfer budget $37,500,000
- Wage budget $942,000 p/w ($0 available)
After their worst Eredivisie finish since 2009 (third) and a summer exodus of talent, Ajax needs to revive their fortunes. Their world-beating youth academy should make this a simple long-term success once the latest generation of players falls off the conveyor belt, but you’ll need to work the transfer market now to displace reigning champions Feyenoord. Once you’ve done that, the next goal should be to bring the Champions League back to Amsterdam. Will you do this with your homegrown talent, or sell them to fund the project?
Brighton
- Transfer budget $100,000,000
- Wage budget $1,987,000 p/w ($187,400 available)
You might be surprised to see that Brighton has the biggest Premier League transfer budget in Football Manager 2024, but after cashing in on Moisés Caicedo, Brighton is in the money. Players will have $100m to spend at the start, and superstar cash available in wages. Irish [FM24 wonderkid]. Evan Ferguson is one to build a team around if you can keep him away from the clutches of Champions League clubs. Brighton plays Moneyball in the transfer market, buying and developing players with huge potential that fly under the radar, but will you do the same?
Inter Miami
- Transfer budget $2,500,000
- Wage budget $685,000 p/w ($22,600 available)
Inter Miami have gone from nowhere to the darlings of the MLS, thanks to a certain Lionel Messi. He’s not alone either, with former Barcelona teammates Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets joining him at the club. You have the challenge of winning silverware before 36-year-old Messi retires, and need to put the newfound popularity to long-term use. MLS saves, with their complex contract rules and unfamiliar draft system, always present an extra FM24 challenge.
Santos FC
- Transfer budget $1,000,000
- Wage budget $359,000 p/w ($30,700 available)
The legendary Brazilian side are in a sorry state. The home of Pelé, and more recently Neymar, has not won silverware for over a decade, and they need a rebuild. Your project starts with Brazil U20 striker Marcos Leonardo looking like a world beater, and a dedicated fanbase looking to you to bring the good times back to Santos. Managing in South America brings a fantastic new take on Football Manager games for those who have only stuck to the familiarity of Europe, giving you the chance to compete in national and regional leagues.
Malaga
- Transfer budget $0
- Wage budget $77,000 ( -$1600 available)
Malaga is the definition of a fallen giant, having slipped into the third tier of Spanish football. This is a massive project. You start with no money, a tiny wage bill, and some good players, but solving the financial issues means you might afford to breeze straight back up the leagues. Whilst playing in Malaga, you might want to seek out a few FM24 free agents to bolster your roster without having to ask the board for more money.
And that’s all you need to know about the best teams in FM24. Football Manager is without a doubt one of the best football games on PC, if you want to bring your love of the beautiful game to the virtual world. Now you’ve got the team in mind, you’ll want to check out the best FM24 tactics and formations so you can get the project kicking off.