With Football Manager 2026 set for release in the next few months, we are looking at interesting save ideas for the latest edition of the game’s favourite football simulator.
Some FM players enjoy managing clubs at the top level of the beautiful game. However, some FM players love a challenge, and one save idea that offers a significant challenge is reviving clubs that have slipped out of the EFL into non-league football.
Here are some of the non-league clubs that we believe would be interesting saves on FM26:
Southend United
From 1958 until 2021, the Shrimpers were members of the Football League. In fact, in the 2005/06 season, United reached their highest point in history when they played in the Championship. Unfortunately for Southend, they only lasted one season in the English second tier.
However, Southend have spent much of their recent history in the third tier of the English football pyramid. United underwent a massive downturn between the 2019/20 and 2020/21 seasons, when they slipped from League One to the National League.
They have spent four seasons in the fifth tier of the English game. In season 2024/25, Southend finished seventh place in the table and suffered a 3-2 play-off final defeat against another former long-serving EFL outfit, Oldham.
Southend are a club that should really be plying their trade in the Football League. The fact that they made the play-offs last season showed that there is quality within the squad’s ranks.
Chester F.C.
The Seals are a phoenix club of Chester City, which went bankrupt in 2010, leading to the club’s return as Chester F.C. in the same season.
Chester City holds a special place in my heart, as I have had the pleasure of managing the club in many previous editions of the game, winning promotion from the then Football Conference all the way to Premier League glory.
Chester FC have risen from the Division One North of the Northern Premier League to their current division, the National League North, which is the sixth tier of the English football league system.
The north west outfit has come close to returning to the National League in recent seasons, losing in the playoff semi-finals in the 2022/23 season. They came even closer to winning promotion last season, losing in the play-off final. They last featured in the fifth tier in season 2017/18 before suffering relegation.
If I were going to choose a non-league club to manage on FM26, then it would be Chester, even if it’s only for the sake of sentimentality.
York City
The Yorkshire outfit is yet another former long-serving Football League member that has fallen down the football pyramid. Founded in 1922, York entered the EFL ahead of the 1958/19 season.
They stayed in the EFL in the 2003/04 season, when they suffered relegation to the Football Conference. They spent eight seasons in the fifth tier before winning promotion to League Two in the 2011/12 season.
After four seasons back in the EFL, the club unfortunately suffered relegation back to the National League in the 2015/16 season. Things got even worse for City the following campaign, as they tumbled into the National League North.
Following five seasons in the sixth-tier, York regained their National League status by winning promotion in 2022. City came so close to regaining their EFL in season 2024/25 by finishing second-place in the fifth-tier table.
However, they suffered play-off heartbreak, losing 3-0 to eventual winners Oldham Athletic in the semi-finals.
It was York’s best season since winning promotion back to the National League. The fact that they finished second-place in the table suggests that York has a decent squad. Could you be the one to take the Minstermen to glory?
Dorking Wanderers
Dorking has to be one of the feel-good stories of recent times in non-league football. Owned and managed by the charismatic Marc White, Dorking have gone from Sunday League football to the National League in season 2023/24, only to suffer relegation back to the sixth-tier the following season.
They have never played in the EFL, so taking Wanderers to the playing league football would be a massive achievement for anybody on FM26.
Which non-league club is your favourite to manage in FM?
