The Matchday squad experience is coming soon

You've been building your Matchday squad, and soon it will be time to take it to the next level. We recently announced on our Discord channel that a new web experience is on the horizon, allowing players to go head-to-head with their cards.

As mentioned in our roadmap, you’ll be able to put together multiple squads, take part in challenges and compete against other players, giving your collection a whole new dimension.

Take on the world

Player v player match-ups

In one of our regular ‘Meet the Matchday Team’ sessions, social media manager Joan Marcet and Discord community manager Sean Mullan discussed the features already confirmed:

Pick your starting XI and substitutes

Choose your preferred team from your cards, and who you'll have waiting in reserve on the bench.

Set your formation

All-out-attack or pack the defence? Pick how you'll set out to face your opponent.

1v1 matches with automatically simulated results

In-game changes, such as switching tactics, won't be available immediately, but will be introduced in future.

More to come

This is just one part of our future plans – we’re also launching our prediction challenge 2.0, based around the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, and Matchday Mobile, with details TBA. Watch this space!

Building together

Insight from the team

Following on from this in a later session, lead designer Paul Vauvrey gave some more insight into the development of the squads experience, explaining the importance of creating a realistic and authentic football simulation that also feels fun. He and the team have been working on a ‘top-down design’ approach, starting with what kind of results they want the game to have and then working backwards to determine the necessary computations and calculations.

“It’s very important for us to build products that feel distinctly football, and feel like they’re emulating football as we fans like it.”

Already looking to the future, Paul noted the importance of laying the foundations for growth over time: “We don’t want it to be a one-off. When we release the first iteration of the squad product, we want it to already be an appealing and interesting experience, but also internally to have all the tools we need to keep growing it.

“We want to create something that feels fresh, manageable and accessible, so it’s not super complex and difficult to play from the start. And we have the opportunity to build as we go with the community, which is very special to me.”

“We are very keen to listen to our community’s feedback. What works, and what they engage and connect with is super important for us to keep our focus.”

Paul’s thoughts are echoed by everyone at Matchday – we’re always interested to hear what you think, and any suggestions you may have for changes or new ideas.

Get involved

Share your thoughts

The best place to speak directly is our Discord server, where you’ll also be able to check out other sessions with guests from the Matchday team and beyond, as well as receiving updates on our upcoming releases.

You can also connect with us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, and let us know what you think. Your input helps shape our output, so please do reach out. We'd love to hear from you!

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