Explore the best football documentaries that inspire Football Manager saves. Discover stories of clubs, managers, and incredible football journeys.
Discover top football documentaries that will ignite your passion for
Football Manager saves.
Football is full of incredible stories. It feels like every club in the world has a story to tell of their own particular trials, tribulations and near misses. The good stories are turned into documentaries, and the very best documentaries inspire their viewers. From someone who has never been interested in a club, to an FM fanatic obsessed with righting a historic wrong, a truly great documentary can bring out an enthusiasm for a club you never knew was there. This article is a list of some of my favourite football documentaries, and the FM saves they’ve inspired.
Sunderland til I Die
The daddy of them all. STID is still one of my favourite documentaries - of any genre - of all time. It tells the story of how Sunderland went from bad to worse: picking up after their relegation from the Premier League in 2017, season one follows The Black Cats through their disastrous season in the Championship. Despite the high turnover of players, staff, and ownership across only two seasons, you can’t help but feel a kinship with the fans who stick with their club throughout. I’ve rewatched STID a couple of times, and I’ve never not been driven to picking up my laptop and getting stuck into bringing Sunderland back to the promised land of top flight football. In recent years, this even comes with the added motivation of toppling arch-rivals mega-rich Newcastle for supremacy in the North East; undoubtedly one of the toughest challenges on FM.
All or Nothing: Arsenal
A different kettle of fish from STID, All or Nothing: Arsenal follows a club in the ascendency. With Arteta’s unique man-management and a likeable bunch of academy graduates, Arsenal as a club come across very well in this series, and you’ll find yourself desperate to take this club over the crest and back into regular title-winning ways. I also recommend the Tottenham version of this series, with a close insight into the workings of a Premier League club at a crossroads in their history.
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One of the world’s most prominent footballing nations; an expectant fan base; a generation of underperformance post-2014. What could possibly go wrong? Die Nationalmannschaft have faced some tough times since their triumph in Brazil in 2014, and the World Cup in Qatar brought a significant level of scrutiny to the side. It was the first time in almost a decade the Germans weren’t entering a tournament as one of the pre-tournament favourites, and this change in the world order was tough for the nation to swallow. This series is a fascinating look at how a country with serious football heritage prepares for a World Cup, and I challenge anyone to watch it and not be motivated to bring German football back to the summit of the international game.
Crystal Palace haven’t always been the most fashionable club in English football. The Eagles saw their darkest days in the early 2010s, when the club was docked 10 points and threatened with relegation to the third tier of English football. The club’s very existence was threatened, and there was no guarantee that the sun would rise over Selhurst Park again. Saved by a group of fans, When Eagles Dare tells the story of Crystal Palace’s journey back from the brink of extinction to the Premier League. The stories of the fans and players who walk their side back from their club’s lowest point is enough to inspire anyone to a Crystal Palace save.
All or Nothing: The German National Team in Qatar
One of the world’s most prominent footballing nations; an expectant fan base; a generation of underperformance post-2014. What could possibly go wrong? Die Nationalmannschaft have faced some tough times since their triumph in Brazil in 2014, and the World Cup in Qatar brought a significant level of scrutiny to the side. It was the first time in almost a decade the Germans weren’t entering a tournament as one of the pre-tournament favourites, and this change in the world order was tough for the nation to swallow. This series is a fascinating look at how a country with serious football heritage prepares for a World Cup, and I challenge anyone to watch it and not be motivated to bring German football back to the summit of the international game.
When Eagles Dare
Crystal Palace haven’t always been the most fashionable club in English football. The Eagles saw their darkest days in the early 2010s, when the club was docked 10 points and threatened with relegation to the third tier of English football. The club’s very existence was threatened, and there was no guarantee that the sun would rise over Selhurst Park again. Saved by a group of fans, When Eagles Dare tells the story of Crystal Palace’s journey back from the brink of extinction to the Premier League. The stories of the fans and players who walk their side back from their club’s lowest point is enough to inspire anyone to a Crystal Palace save.
Terim
When conversations of the greatest managers in the world come around, a name chronically undermentioned is Fatih Terim. The greatest manager that Turkish football has ever known, Terim was the mastermind behind Galatasaray’s European triumph in 2000, as well as the Turkish national side’s qualification for Euro 1996 and later their trip to the semi finals in Euro 2008. He led Galatasaray to eight titles over four spells which spanned over four different decades, and was a prolific winner every time he stepped into the dugout in Istanbul. A seriously underrated manager, his story is fascinating and this Netflix documentary does him justice.
Boca Juniors Confidential
Boca Juniors are one of the most famous clubs in the world. The Argentinian giants contest one of the fiercest rivalries on earth, and their former players includes some of the biggest names in the history of Argentine football: Martin Palermo, Carlos Tevez, Juan Roman Riquelme, Claudio Caniggia, and of course Diego Maradona. Steeped in history, this docu-series is a sensational look behind the curtain of one of the most revered and respected clubs in the world. Oh, and of course plenty of footage of La Bombonera at its rapturous best.
Um Dia de Futebol
Desportivo das Aves has one of the all-time greatest underdog stories. Minnows of Portuguese football, battling in the doldrums of the Primeira Liga, were playing only their fourth ever season in the top flight - and it was the first time they avoided relegation. However, despite their modest history, they enjoyed a fairytale run to the final of the Taca de Portugal in 2018, and were rewarded with the greatest day in the club’s history. This documentary follows the fans and players of Aves as they face one of the nation’s giants for a chance at history, and to etch their names in Portuguese footballing heritage forever. If you like an underdog story and a rags-to-riches save, this is the documentary for you.
Conclusion
Some of football’s greatest stories are immortalised in the documentaries listed. Whether you follow one of the biggest clubs in the world, a lower league minnow, or somewhere in between, there’s a documentary of a club with a story to tell. I hope the list above inspires your next FM save, and you enjoy following the lesser-known but fascinating stories of these clubs.
