How to Play
KoFTeMaN commented:
INSTALLING INSTRUCTIONS FOR WIN 10
- Unrar the "The-F-A-Premier-League-Manager-2002_Win_EN" rar file in to your "C" DRIVE
- Go to the setup file run the
3Dsetup, you will have a new file named3Doptions.dat - Move the file named
3Doptions.datin to the file named "English" - Download the 32-bit installer provided in the comments (Note: available as FIX on this page),
- Unrar the Is3Engine rar file in to the games Setup English file, you will have exe named "setup32"
- Run the "setup32" and start the Installation,
- Use the CD-KEY :
4507-1863659-3033569-5650 - Choose the Install Path as
C:\EA SPORTS\FA Premier League Manager 2002
Next step is cracking the game:
- Unrar the "The-F-A-Premier-League-Manager-2002_NoCD_Win_EN" you will get file named "FootballManager.EXE"
- Copy the
FootballManager.EXEin to theC:\EA SPORTS\FA Premier League Manager 2002when asked for replace, replace the file - Run the game using the
FootballManager.EXEfile
Troubleshooting;
When you start the game if you have blurry screen problem,
Go to C:\EA SPORTS\FA Premier League Manager 2002\Setup delete the file named 3Doptions.dat
English 
Comments and reviews
After a lot of waiting, trial and error, and stress, I finally figured out how to get the editor working. Download the ChatGPT app. Again, I mean the app—don’t open it through a web browser. Grant it permission to make changes to your computer and instruct it to launch the editor. It took about 20 minutes for me, but it managed to do it. I suspect it might help with the overall game installation and other issues. Give it a try—you won’t regret it.
Hello, despite your explications, i don't manage to make it work.
Anyone can help me ?
PS: I'm a french frog
Für Fussball Manager 2003
-----------------------
Patch 1.1: https://www.patches-scrolls.de/patch/1768/7/43938/download
No CD Patch 1.1: https://gamecopyworld.com/games/pc_fussball_manager_2003.shtml
I had this once, after loading a clicked match and it crashed. I clicked around a few screens first, then match and it was fine!
Hi, I have installed and played for 5 seasons, now i can load my save file but it crashes before or right after the next match. I can play a new game without any problem.
Any ideas?
Writing as of 02.05.2026 ! This game and the Kofte details worked. Let me try to again repeat his/my process.
1. Download the game from here as well as under the game, the 2 other files(you will need them during process..)
2. Unrar/Unzip/Un-iso the game anywhere.
3. Enter the folder, go in the SETUP Folder and run the "3Dsetup3Doptions.dat".
*** Uncheck everything, put low graphics and pick the SOFTWARE RENDERER instead of your graphics card. A new file will appear "English"3Doptions.dat move it to the ENGLISH Folder there.
4. Unzip/unrar the "Is3Engine" rar file in the Game Folder/SETUP/ENGLISH folder
5. You will have a file named "setup32", run it for the installation.
***Use the CD-KEY : 4507-1863659-3033569-5650
6. MOST IMPORTANT Choose the Install Path as C:\EA SPORTS\FA Premier League Manager 2002 it has to be installed in the MAIN C:/ Folder (My Computer/C:)
7. Next step is cracking the game:
Unrar the "The-F-A-Premier-League-Manager-2002_NoCD_Win_EN" and you will get file named "FootballManager.EXE"
8. Copy the file in the C:\EA SPORTS\FA Premier League Manager 2002 FOLDER and override the current one.
Run the game using the file "FootballManager.EXE"
Cheers!
P.S You may not be able to alt-tab without closing the game. Keyboard will seem as not working but shift+alt+del works if you panick :)
*** If you have issues with the mouse or keyboard in the game, go in the Properties/Compatibility option of the .exe file and check the "Disable Fullscreen optimizations".
finally can play this game in win11
Does anyone know where the save file is located ?
Selamlar
win 11 64 bit bilgisayarımda oyunu açtım. Burada anlatılanların tamamını yaptıktan sonra oyunu açtığınızda klavye mause donuyor ve oyun donuyor ise :
1 - EA SETUP 3DSETUP
Texture details : low
3d graphics options :
Buradaki tüm işaretleri kaldırıp, en üstteki seçenekten ''SOFTWARE RENDERER'' seçin.
kaydedin ve oynayın !
Qual compatibilidade eu devo usar pra funcionar no meu wind 11?
instalei tudo certinho, mas quando passa da logo da tela preta e fecha o jogo
file 3Doptions.dat appears only when you open 3dsetup and save it.
hello, i'm trying to install the game but the file 3Doptions.dat doesn't appear nowhere. I run windows 11 . I really want to bring back some memories if possible. thanks
Any help on getting the editor working?
no matter what i do i cannot get it passed the first logo screen then black screen the shuts off tried all you have said am i missing something on win 10
Having recently ugraded my GPU (3060Ti to 9070XT) I've come back to this game again and I have thing working perfectly following the base install instruction on this page. I needed to switch off all FSR/frame gen options just as I had previosuly with disabling GSYNC and DSLR when I was using an NVDIDA card. Sounds rather obvious, I know, but is something that is easy enough to forget to troubleshoot.
Added to this, @LUCASGILLS describes a fix for the 3D game crashes which works brillianty -and sorts a probelm I'd had before with previosuly otherwise functional installs.
@N08
I couldn't get the editor working at all in Windows 11, but I could get it to work just fine in a XP VM.
Not an ideal solution, I concede, but copying the edited files out of the VM into the host install directory they work just fine in W11.
God bless if anyone can help with the editor
After latest win 11 updates the game was not working properly, but setting "software renderer" option in 3d setup helped. Thanks Paramel for this catch.
My only concern is that animations like flags, blinking mail buttons, etc. are running fast as hell. So it is quite uncomfortable. can this be somehow fixed?
Hi guys. I had all the troubles here including black screen etc. It is very important to run the game with software renderer, not with your graphics card. This is the only way I got it working. + "run as admin" and "disable fullscreen optimizations".
nice one guys, everything is working even managed to get 3d matches to work!
only thing i cant figure out is the editor! any help?
Does anybody know how to fix the mouse issues?
My mouse doesn't work at all when the main menu loads up, and if I mess with some settings I can get it moving but then the menu is all mushed up and it crashes when I click. I've tried so many settings combinations I've lost count!
OK I found the missing file on the ISO disk and manually put it in the \data\audio\speech folder.
Now everything goes fines, 3D match with live commentary !
Thanks to all the help provided here I managed to install and play the game on my Win11 64 bits laptop.
Only problem so far I cannot watch games in 3D as I get an error message saying :
"STREAM - unable to open file 'C:\EA SPORTS\FA Premier League Manager 2002\data\audio\speech\NewSpeech.str'
FILE cmn\stream.c LINE 470 FUNCTION"
And indeed in the speech folder I have a file named 'NewSpeech.inf' but no 'NewSpeech.str'.
Ideas anyone ?
I'm stuck with black screen on my laptop. I've tried anything I read here but nothing work... :/
I played one season and during the second season it just kicks me out of the game when I go to game day.
there is a video on youtube "install***the FA premier league 2002". Try it out
Have the game working great on Windows 11 having had issues with getting stuck on a black screen after starting the No CD exe.
Disabling GSYNC seems to have been the fix that solved the issue for me, so I'd recommend testing that if anyone is having issues with loading the game.
E -reg not launching
windows 11 isn't having it
Running it on Win11 64bit :)
I followed the instructions from KoFTeMaN and also the one from MD05, where inside the .../Setup/English subfolder i opened the file "compnent.txt" and deleted line "setup/3Doptions.dat", and only then run Setup32 app to install the game.
During installation i received and error message about wrong path, etc., but ended fine.
About the message from coopuk, to me as well the game started, but mouse and keyboard frozen once i entered the main menu inside the game. What helped was to change the compatibility settings for "FootballManager.exe" - i used "run as admin" and "disable fullscreen optimizations"
Спасибо тебе добрый человек, все работает!
How do you download the game using windows 8?
I would like to switch the game to French and the currency to francs. How can I do this?
Windows 11 Home running 64 bit.
Game gets to Start New Game - and then freezes :( keyboard and mouse locked. So close :( Any ideas on how to fix this?
I can CONFIRM that the guide Kofteman explained works for both Win10 and Win11 .
Download all 3 things. Unzip the game in Windows C: main folder, Make the 3dsetup, unzip and place the new .exe .. start game and enjoy !
I followed everything but when I enter the destination in the installer it shows ERROR = -13 then "File not found in setup.pkg.(setup/3Doptions.dat)".
I have made a video on how to install this game on youtube, if anyone has trouble installing can consult.
WOOO HOOO!
today is 11/6/2024
Finally, i installed my favorite game on window 10 64 bit!
after about 3 hours of trying this and that with comments below, it will fail on several tries but one lucky try installed the game for me.
. i would love to give you the screen shots but i dont know how.
i hope i can do a youtube video on how to install when i have a chance.
thanks a bunch to admins and people giving links and instructions below.
i get into message "error=-13" then "File not found in setup.pkg.(setup/3Doptions.dat)".
any idea how to fix this ?
Wow, just spent an entire day trying to get this to work, and finally got it going 😍
It IS possible on a Windows 11 machine. You'll need to use the setup32 hack referenced here to make it work on a 64-bit machine. I kept running into the problem that the screen would go black after 2 or 3 seconds of loading once everything was installed.
What fixed it for me was to make sure to BOTH install (clicking the setup32 file) and play (clicking the Football Manager no CD exe file) the game on compatibility mode for Windows XP SP2 and click "run as administrator" in properties/compatibility.
Hope this helps somebody!
This worked for me:
1. Download "VMware Workstation Player" on your Windows PC. This is a virtual machine able to run different operating systems such as Windows XP. Follow the download and install instructions, for "VMware WP" on the WMvare website. Google it or follow this URL: https://www.vmware.com/content/vmware/vmware-published-sites/us/products/workstation-player/workstation-player-evaluation.html.html
2. Download "Windows XP Professional SP3 (x64)", the ISO-file, and install the OS in WMware. Google it (archive.org) or follow this URL: https://archive.org/details/windows-xp-professional-sp3-integral-edition-x64
3. When Windows XP is installed in WMware then transfer the downloaded files (the game + NOCD-file) into Windows XP and start the installation. Follow the installation instructions, and see older comments for tips and help on the way. "Kofteman" has given a CD-KEY that works: 4507-1863659-3033569-5650 (Please read what he has writen in the comments!)
Good luck and enjoy this amazing game!
not able to install the game showing error= -13
Still cant get it right. Can anyone do a youtube tutorial on how to get this right?
thank you
Hi everyone,
i followed "KOFTEMAN" instructions to installed the game today,
its worked!!!
so if anyone want to play the game and having abt the installing problems,
i lovely to try my best to help you guest~
here's my email: flolau0520@g
all the best
This game is super cool. Check also UEFA Manager 2000 !
I managed to install it but when I start the game, I get the EA Sports intro and its loading, but then the screen turns black and return to the desktop. Does any one know how to fix this? Would really like to play this game again!
where to download - Download the 32-bit installer provided in the comments,
Unrar the Is3Engine rar file in to the games Setup English file, you will have exe named "setup32". Can someone explaine it to me, please.
Please give detailed instructions on how to play the game on Windows 11. I really like playing this game. Please
I´m having trouble seeing matches... It just cuts to desktop, with match sound roaring in the background... Anybody have a solution for this?
ps: on windows 11 x64
When installed and running I only see black and white colored pixels.
Need help. I use VMware to play WIN XP, installed the game, but black screen after double click and return to desktop. How to do
Can someone help me? I installed the game but when I enter it gets a black screen and I can't do anything, some special settings through the dgvoodoo 2 program
I've Win10 x64. I tried everything, including dgVoodooCpl, but game still, isn't running :(
I am struggling to get this going, all installed but wont boot. Can anyone share what version of DGVoodoo they use and the settings they use?
For anyone still having issues, try this fix - https://www.reddit.com/r/techsupport/comments/452lyf/32bit_setup_launcher_not_working_on_windows_10/
eu quero instalar este jogo
I found this wouldn't install on Windows 10 64 bit.
But if you go here: https://www.pcgamingwiki.com/wiki/The_F.A._Premier_League_Manager_2002
Scroll down and look for a link for the 32Bit installshield exe. Download this and place the 32bit installer in the game install folder. The installer needs to go in the setup/English folder.
Run that exe and the game will install. Note you need to get the cd key online. Just search for FA Premier Manager 2002 CD key.
Also you may need DGvoodoo to help run the game too. The above link where you accessed the 32bit installshield gives you instructions on what you need
I would add as well as adding the DGvoodoo DLLs to the games directory, also add the DGvoodoo exe and config file from the DGvoodoo download.
How can I change the game language to English?
Where can I find 32-bit installer?
What do i do if the game does not install due to incompatibility
I have tried everything in the comments and no luck in even getting it installed, i even got a physical disc copy too and zero look on windows 10 :(
I've run into the issue that I think @Baier123 runs into and @J mentions explicity, with 3Doptions.dat apparently missing when installing: "File not found in setup.pkg.(setup/3Doptions.dat)".
Unfortunately, running 3Dsetup to create this file and copying it to the English folder as J suggests didn't fix the issue for me.
What did work for me, was removing the line in "compnent.txt" that references the problematic dat file, and THEN running the installer. This resulted in a succesful installation, and once the no-CD exe replaces the default exe the game seems to runs just fine for me.
Hope this helps anyone else who may run into the same/a similar issue.
So I've followed all the steps described in the comments, but after the initial EA loading screen, it goes to black as though to load the game but then closes itself. If I run it fullscreen/in compatibility mode then it stays black and I cannot get the programme to close. Any ideas?
@BAIER123 - if after this error you then get another 'Severe' one saying it can't find a 3D setup file - that file (think it's something like 3dsetup.dat) is sitting in the SETUP folder before the English folder. Cut and paste it into the English folder then the setup should run. Worked for me anyway!
how do i convert the no-cd to english admin ??? thank you
@THEHET sorry, but that one installed without any effort and problems for me.
@Zupak - I'm trying to replicate this on FM2001 but just cannot get it to work. Any help appreciated. Stuck with an ???uninstallshield error when trying to install.
Finally it works! I renamed the install path to C:\EA SPORTS\FA Premier League Manager 2002, instead of the suggested .:\EA SPORTS\FA Premier League Manager 2002. That seemed to do the trick, despite an error still popping up during installation. Everything is running smoothly now. Big thank you to MORGAN and LSB90 !
I've downloaded the 32-bit installer and can get the past the CD Key, when i go through the setup i get Error= -13
Any ideas on what could be going wrong?
By "simple settings" I meant having everything unticked on dgVoodooCpl. Also, under "Config folder / Running instance" at the very top of dgVoodooCpl, make sure it's the "\AppData\Roaming\" instance you are editing.
Once this is done, make sure the game's 3D Setup does NOT have "Software Renderer" as the 3D graphics card (i.e. choose your PC's graphics card) and everything else is unticked or set to low, and it should run much faster and smoother.
Hope this makes sense!
Thank to LSB90, I got this running! However, it is slow as hell.
I sadly don't understand what is meant by "simple settings" on dgVoodooCpl, so that may be the problem right there.
Any final help possible? I'm eager to get Stalybridge to the Premier League again!
For those who managed to install it with 32bit workaround and in need of a CD key, you can use this: 4507-1863659-3033569-5650
I still haven't been able to run the game on Win10-64bit though. I have managed to install it but it doesn't launch (I have tried many compatibility settings, and added Directx 8 dlls with no success).
If someone who managed to make it work on Win10 can help me, it would be very much appreciated.
Ok, so I found a 32-bit installer to bypass the 16-bit installer which seams to work, only problem now is its asking for a game code from the manual. Where can I get a code? Link to the installer here:https://community.pcgamingwiki.com/files/file/111-installshield-3-32-bit-generic-installer/
I got the same problem with not supported on 64-bit windows, the game is 32-bit i believe but its the imstaller that wont run cause its only 16-bit, anyway round this?
Unsupported 16-bit application, cannot run on 64-bit. If anyone can explain to me how to run it anyway, you will have my eternal love. I have been looking for this ultimate form of nostalgia for about 10 years now, and I see it's getting very close!
No-cd?
Still won't run on my 64-bit Windows 10, as was the case when I tried running it from the original CD. The 2001 version presented on this site does work... Any ideas?
No comment nor review for this game at the moment.