SAN FRANCISCO – SEGA® of America today announced the North American release of Worldwide Soccer Manager, a sports management simulation game that is officially licensed by Major League Soccer (MLS). Developed for the PC and Mac by UK developer Sports Interactive, creators of the highly popular Championship Manager™ series, Worldwide Soccer Manager represents the next evolution in fantasy sports by enabling gamers to control all team-related activities for their favorite professional soccer teams in the U.S. as well as 50 other countries across the world.
Worldwide Soccer Manager features an award-winning game engine that offers highly realistic simulations where gamers are responsible for overall team performance through the management of important franchise elements including, but not limited to, coaching, scouting, trading, human resources and finance. Soccer enthusiasts, fantasy sports and tycoon fans, and other sports fans who want a fresh, challenging experience can put their knowledge to the test by managing every facet of a soccer club.
"We have brought a title that is wildly popular abroad to the U.S., where soccer continues to grow in popularity with the success of our national team and Major League Soccer," said Scott A. Steinberg, vice president of entertainment marketing, SEGA of America, Inc.
"By including players from all MLS clubs, as well as real players from Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Spain, Italy and England to name just a few, we hope Worldwide Soccer Manager will ride the current wave of fascination in fantasy sports that is pervasive in the U.S., and take this genre to the next level," said Miles Jacobson, CEO of Sports Interactive.
"Major League Soccer is pleased to partner with video game leaders such as SEGA and Sports Interactive to include MLS teams and players in the world's most popular management-style soccer game," said Stu Crystal, vice president of marketing and consumer products for MLS. "Worldwide Soccer Manager's entry into the U.S. market will enable core fans who understand the nuances of the game of soccer to truly experience the evaluation and management process that Major League Soccer's coaches and general managers execute on a daily basis."
In addition to MLS, Worldwide Soccer Manager features leagues from more than 50 different countries, so players can manage clubs from countries such as Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, England, Italy and Spain. The game includes a player database of more than 240,000 players and staff from 3,000 clubs worldwide in more than 170 divisions.
Worldwide Soccer Manager is currently available in all major retailers in the U.S. with an MSRP of $39.99.
About SEGA
SEGA® of America, Inc. is the American arm of Tokyo, Japan-based SEGA Corporation, a worldwide leader in interactive entertainment both inside and outside the home. The company develops, publishes and distributes interactive entertainment software products for a variety of hardware platforms including PC, wireless devices, and those manufactured by Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment Inc. SEGA of America's Web site is located at www.SEGA.com.
About Sports Interactive
Sports Interactive (SI), the creator of the Championship Manager® series, is the world's leading developer of sports management simulations. Founded in 1994 and based in Islington, North London, SI has a full-time staff of 34 and employs the services of more than 2,500 part-time researchers across the globe. Five of SI's creations are among the UK's Top 20 best-selling PC games of all time. The company's future games will be published by the global computer and video games giant, SEGA. Further information on the company is available from its website, www.sigames.com.
About Major League Soccer
Headquartered in New York City, Major League Soccer is the top flight professional soccer league in the United States and features many stars from the U.S. and around the world. The 12 teams in MLS are: the Chicago Fire, Colorado Rapids, Columbus Crew, FC Dallas, Kansas City Wizards, Los Angeles Galaxy, MetroStars, New England Revolution, San Jose Earthquakes, 2004 MLS Cup Champion D.C. United and the two newest expansion teams, Real Salt Lake and Club Deportivo Chivas USA, which begin play in 2005. Major League Soccer's tenth season kicks off on April 2, 2005. For more information about MLS, log on to the League's official Web site at www.MLSnet.com.
SEGA is a trademark of SEGA Corporation in the U.S. and/or other countries. All other trademarks are properties of their respective owners.
© Sports Interactive Limited 2004. SEGA and SEGA logo are either registered trademarks or trademarks of SEGA Corporation. Football Manager, Sports Interactive and the Sports Interactive Logos are either registered trademarks or trademarks of Sports Interactive. Championship Manager is a trademark of Eidos Interactive Limited. All other company names, brand names and logos are property of their respective owners.
