I was about a season and a half into my career with an English club, Wantage Town FC, when I decided I wasn't enjoying it as much anymore. I learned that if you make your managerial alter ego an English football icon and turn him loose in an amateur league, it's fairly easy to put together a juggernaut without really knowing what you are doing.
At the same time, the World Cup has me even more captivated by "the beautiful game" than I was before. So I decided to set Wantage Town aside and begin a new managerial career. I'm doing a few things differently this time around.
I found a very cool edited database that allows me to manage in the tiny nation of Luxembourg, and that's where this tale will be set.
There are two leagues in this Luxembourgish football universe: the National Division and the Promotion Division. Each division has 14 clubs, and there are amateur and semi-professional clubs at both levels. I chose FC Victoria Rosport, an amateur club in the Promotion Division.
Rosport is a beautiful little town in far eastern Luxembourg, on the Sauer River, which is Luxembourg's border with Germany. FC Victoria Rosport (usually called simply Rosport) was founded in 1928. We play our home matches at Victoriarena, right beside the Sauer.
Our grounds. Those are our guys in the red strip.
Photo by Christopher Voitus.
I couldn't resist the temptation to make myself a Luxembourg international. (How often do you get that opportunity?
) Earning 45 caps for Luxembourg hardly qualifies me as a football legend, however.
I have two "house rules" in place this time around:
- No stockpiling players. An amateur club has, in effect, no budget limitations. It can "sign" as many amateur players as it can attract. I'll avoid that temptation and keep Rosport's squad list at a realistic size.
- I won't raid the other clubs in the Promotion Division. However, if a division rival signs a player away from us, I will feel very free to reciprocate. And if I can attract a player from a National Division club with the prospects of first team football, that's another matter.
I'm about a month into the 2012-13 season, so I'll be back soon to introduce you to the club and report on our pre-season frendlies.