24 Oct, 2025
The Best Tactics We Discovered So Far on Football Manager 26
We take you through some of the best early tactics people have discovered and used in Football Manager 26 since it launched!
Like me, you probably opened the tactic screen on Football Manager 2026, took one look at the in-possession and out-of-possession shapes, and said: “what the f**k is going on?!” It’s a massive leap from previous Football Manager games. I’ve been playing since Football Manager 2007 and I genuinely felt like a beginner again. So, at the start, while you’re figuring out how everything works, having a few strong templates to base your ideas on can really help. Over time you’ll naturally pick things up, but sometimes you just want something to get you going without the whole baptism of fire situation.
With that in mind, I’ve gone hunting around the internet for the best early tactics on Football Manager 2026. We have already taken a look at all of the player roles in Football Manager 26, as well as all of the leagues you can and cannot play in the game! The game has only been out for about half a day, but already people have uploaded some proper gems when it comes to tactical set ups. If you’ve just lost your first five matches and you’re staring at your laptop wondering where it all went wrong, don’t worry. I’ve got you.
Quadruple winning tactic:
Yes, someone has already won a quadruple on Football Manager 2026. The game released at 8pm last night. How did they achieve something most of us won’t manage across a full game cycle? Well, it wasn’t by reinventing football. They’ve gone with a classic gegenpress 4-2-3-1, both in and out of possession.
- If you want to see how it works, the creator has done a full video breakdown here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KbT3Kp14WLU&t=634s
- And you can download the tactic here: https://www.fmscout.com/c-fm26-tactics.html?id=12922#:~:text=Image%20%20Elite%20Team,137
Possession based tactic:
Not all tactics this year have to be high-intensity pressing chaos. Some are built around control, patience and pinning the opposition back. This one is a good example of that. It’s described as a “revolutionary hybrid” shape that plays as a 4-3-3 (Attack) in possession and shifts into a 5-2-3 when defending. The creator used it with Aston Villa and had them in the Champions League places ahead of Liverpool. Not too bad at all.
- Download link here: https://www.fmscout.com/a-banerjeeball-fm26-tactic.html#:~:text=A%20revolutionary%20hybrid%20tactic%20that,and%20efficient%20transitions%20%E2%80%94%20perfectly
Counter attack tactic
There are always fewer effective counter-attacking systems in Football Manager compared to the number of pressing setups people share. But someone has already put out a really solid one. It’s a 3-4-3 in possession that turns into a 4-4-2 block out of possession. During testing it apparently won 83 percent of matches, which is a serious result.
- Download link here: https://sortitoutsi.net/content/74701/mteksen-3-4-3-best-tactics#:~:text=Formation%203
Final thoughts:
Right now, 4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3 are still the go-to shapes in possession. They work and they’re familiar. But defensively there’s now a lot more flexibility. 4-4-2, 4-2-3-1 and 5-2-3 blocks look really strong from what we’ve seen so far. I’m sure the community will find a definitive meta soon enough, but hopefully this year we see more pragmatic and varied tactical systems making a comeback. With any luck, we won’t have to default to gegenpress or vertical tiki-taka every single save just to get results.
Check out our early takeaways from the Football Manager 26 Beta – the good, the bad and the ugly!
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