Do you sometimes play the career mode in FIFA 22 and think “with my skills, I could definitely become a football coach”? William Still has experienced something similar – but with the help of the “Football Manager”.
When looking at simulation video games nowadays, it’s no wonder that sometimes you think: “Well, with everything I accomplish here – I should be able to do that in real life too.” It is easy to get lost in the details of some simulators. Even FIFA 22’s career mode sometimes makes you think: “I could definitely play in the Bundesliga.”
Something similar is reported by William Still. Still is now 29 years old and regularly stands on the sidelines of professional football as an assistant coach for the Belgian top club Standard Liège. A circumstance that he also owes to the game “Football Manager” – as Still recounted in an interesting portrait by “Sportbible“.
“I believe Football Manager has helped me become a better coach”
This is what Still says: Together with his brother Edward, Still played hours of Football Manager in his youth – first the “F.A. Premier League Football Manager 2001”, then “Championship Manager”. “The worst phase came when I was about 14 or 15. You looked at the clock and it was 10 PM and you said: ‘Oh, I will go to bed at midnight’. And the next thing you know, it’s half past four in the morning,” Still remembers today.
“Football Manager gave me the impetus to build a team,” he says today. While he was good at football, the game gave him the first impression of what it was like to manage a team: “I believe that people who play Football Manager understand the game a little better. You have to go into great detail to win and be successful, especially nowadays where the game is becoming increasingly complicated. I appreciate people who are so passionate and immerse themselves so deeply into the game.”
Still describes that a large part of the game actually corresponds to what happens in real life: “It sounds silly to say, but there were so many aspects that came up again and made sense.”
This includes transfer activities with offers and counter-offers, but not only that: “There are also general talks with the players, the setup of training plans, fitness groups, and training programs, both collectively and individually.”
Of course, you can also play the game “casually,” focusing only on transfers and that’s it. Then it’s not so close to reality. But the more you delve into the details, Still says, the more the game resembles real life: “I believe Football Manager has helped me become a better coach.”
This also aligns with statements from Liverpool professional Diogo Jota: He mentioned that FIFA makes him a better footballer.
This is how William Still’s career has gone so far
Sportbible describes how Still went from long nights playing Football Manager to becoming a coach. Even in real football, Still had something to show, having played in the fourth Belgian league. At 17, he then decided not to pursue professional football further. Instead, he moved to England to complete his sports degree.
As part of a course on video analysis and football training, he ended up at the club “Preston North End”. There he coached the U14 team.
After returning from England to Belgium, he met Sint-Truiden’s coach Yannick Ferrera after a game. He asked Ferrera if he could be of any use – without a contract, without money. Ferrera asked him if he could film and edit games – and he could.
Soon after, Still was also supposed to provide analyses of the videos. And now it was working.
- Sint-Truiden was promoted and Ferrera moved to the top league competitor Standard Liège. Ferrera took him along as a video analyst.
- Soon after, he moved to Lierse SK, where Still helped not only with video analysis but also with training. Then in 2017, the coach there was dismissed – and Still was to take over on an interim basis at age 24. He simply couldn’t believe it:
I was heavily involved, but going from assistant to real manager was something else. I said about ten times to [the club president]: ‘I don’t think you understand. I am only 24. This isn’t happening.’ But he said it was fine. From that day forward, I was the head coach of a Belgian second division club and was basically living my dream.
William Still (via Sportbible)
- However, in 2018 the club went bankrupt and Still had to leave.
- He moved to Beerschot – and became an assistant coach again.
- In 2021, he then became head coach at Beerschot – at age 28, a record for the youngest head coach in Belgium.
- Afterwards, he moved for a few months to Stade Reims – and faced Lionel Messi in his debut for Paris Saint-Germain.
He warmed up next to me and I thought: Damn, this is Lionel Messi… this is actually ridiculous.
William Still (via Sportbible)
In October, he then returned to Belgium again – to Standard Liège, where he took on the role of assistant coach again.
In Belgium, William Still even faced his brother Edward, who is the head coach at RSC Charleroi. You can see: The football manager sessions have apparently advanced both brothers.
Now Still is planning long-term to become a head coach himself again.
Do you also have a game that you think could influence your career path in the future? Let us know in the comments.
The title image is from the introductory video of William Still at Standard Liège on YouTube.
