Return of football management’s top dog: 
Codemasters brings on LMA MANAGER 2001.

Codemasters today confirms the return of its genre-beating football management game with the announcement of an autumn launch for LMA Manager 2001 on PlayStation. The number one brand will re-emerge and, once again, be the first football management game to accurately detail all the new season’s team and player data and statistics. 

LMA Manager 2001 will also be the first console truly pan-European football management game; delivering players with absolute control over any of the English, Scottish, Italian, German, Spanish or French league football clubs. More impressively, Codemasters will produce dedicated editions for each of the major European territories, supported with specific packaging and marketing materials.

The original LMA Manager, released October 1999, was the first football management game written exclusively for PlayStation gamers. It became a number one smash hit on launch and is now the football management game by which others are judged.

LMA Manager 2001 is again officially endorsed by the League Managers Association and is licensed by FIFPro, the professional body representing all European players. Further localised endorsements such as the Liga Futbol Profesional in Spain, the football authority that represents the Spanish clubs, players and competitions, are also in place.

With hundreds of clubs across 32 countries, over 300 stadiums across Europe and 8000+ authentic players, complete with home, away and goalkeeper strips, LMA Manager 2001’s team tactics, training and match AI have been completely re-designed providing the most realistic and controllable football management simulation to date.

The acclaimed realistic 3D match action has been enhanced to provide an even more dynamic recreation of a match in progress. As in the original players have the opportunity to make tactical changes or substitutions at any time, but LMA Manager 2001 delivers more control and options without seeming any more complicated. This, and the ability to view accurate and detailed highlights, gives the user the feedback that was not even achieved in the original game. 

“The LMA brand appeals to people who already play football management games and general PlayStation gamers who are experimenting with the genre for the first time,” says producer Simon Prytherch.
“The very essence of LMA Manager 2001 makes players feel as though they are actually managing a football club, not just shuffling around computer-generated statistics. We have enhanced the unique user interface to take the player to higher level of control and give them even more graphical satisfaction.” 

Comments Mike Hayes, Codemasters’ Sales and Marketing Director:
	“LMA Manager was an incredibly successful launch and propelled the brand into the number one slot in both the commercial sales charts and the minds of games players and critics.
	“LMA Manager 2001’s content gives us a pan-European basis on which to build the brand further and deliver a game that not only is regarded as the best on PlayStation but the best football management game available on any platform throughout Europe.”
ENDS

WEB SITE

•	www.codemasters.com

UK PRESS INFORMATION

Richard Eddy or Ben Le Rougetel
Rocket Media - London
Tel:	0207 437 6100 
Fax: 	0207 437 6200
Email:	info@rocketmedia.co.uk

| Notes to Editors:

Established in 1986, Codemasters is a leading developer and publisher of best-selling interactive entertainment products for a global audience on current and future gaming platforms and channels. Codemasters’ genre-leading brands include Colin McRae Rally, Touring Cars, Micro Machines/Maniacs, and LMA Manager. With an annual turnover in excess of $100 million, the company is headquartered in Southam, Warwickshire, UK where it employs over 400 staff, and maintains European operations in Germany, France, Spain, Benelux and plans to set up operations in Scandinavia. The company entered the US publishing market in 1999 and has an online gaming US-based development facility in Oakhurst, CA. More information about the company and its products is available online at ttp://www.codemasters.com.