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In Football Manager 26, define what you want to find, then give the search to an appropriate scout or delegate it to your recruitment staff. Check scouting reports as they develop before deciding whether a player merits closer attention. FM26 guidance confirms delegation and youth-scouting approaches, but it does not document a universal current menu path; use the labels in your edition rather than assuming FM23 screens still apply.
Start with the edition you are playing
Scouting menus and terminology differ between Football Manager editions. This guide focuses on FM26 where official advice is available, and labels older mechanics as FM23-specific. If you cannot find a control, search the in-game interface for scouting or recruitment rather than relying on an older guide’s exact clicks.
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For context, Football Manager’s FM23 feature overview describes Recruitment Focuses as replacing the older Assignments system. That is useful background, not proof that FM26 uses the same screens or labels. Football Manager’s FM23 Recruitment Revamp
Set a clear purpose for each search
Before assigning anyone, decide what decision the search should help you make. A useful focus narrows the pool by the player you need and the places you can realistically scout. FM23’s documented Recruitment Focuses included examples such as position, transfer type, age, role proficiency, potential and territory; treat those as examples of the concept, not a confirmed list of FM26 controls.
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- Position or role: Search for a role that addresses a squad need, rather than asking staff to find a vague “good player.”
- Age: Decide whether you are recruiting for the first team or looking for younger development prospects.
- Transfer preference: Where the edition offers it, distinguish permanent transfer targets from loan options.
- Ability or potential: Set a threshold that fits your intended use and the level of your club.
- Territory: Keep the search within the areas or competitions your club can scout effectively.
These criteria help define the search; they do not guarantee that the game will return a suitable player.
Choose manual assignment or delegation
FM26’s official delegation advice recommends having effective scouts and a Chief Scout in place before handing scouting work to staff. The Chief Scout can create assignments and provide opposition analysis, so delegation can cover routine recruitment work as well as preparation for matches. Football Manager’s FM26 delegation guide
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Assign scouts yourself when the target matters
Manual assignment gives you direct control over who handles a defined priority. Use it when a search is particularly important and you want to choose a scout whose role or geographic knowledge suits the work. Keep the focus narrow enough that the scout is searching for a useful group of players, not an unbounded list.
Delegate routine work when staff are ready
Delegation reduces the need to manage every search yourself, but it is only as useful as the staff and instructions you have provided. Check that the recruitment team and Chief Scout are established, then review what staff produce instead of assuming an assignment has found the right player.
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Use geography and competitions to shape youth scouting
Football Manager’s FM26 youth-recruitment advice recommends focusing searches by position when you need more depth or your scouting range is limited. It also suggests manually checking youth tournaments and national squads to broaden recruitment coverage. These are ways to add structure and depth to a search, not guarantees of discovering stronger prospects. Football Manager’s FM26 youth recruitment tips
- When your range is limited, break a broad youth search into position-based searches.
- Use youth tournaments and national squads as additional places to look for prospects.
- Keep your expectations tied to the coverage available to your club; a narrow range cannot reveal every player in the game world.
Read reports before acting
A scout’s work is useful because it adds information to a recruitment decision, not because every recommendation should be treated as a signing instruction. Review the report and its progress in your edition’s scouting or recruitment area, then decide whether you need more assessment before pursuing a player.
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FM23 documented progress updates that arrived monthly by default, with weekly updates available, and grouped players as Recommended, Near Matches or Ongoing. It also used report states including Ongoing, Stopped, Completed and Needs Updating; the latter indicated an old completed report. These labels and update options are historical FM23 mechanics. Confirm the wording and controls in FM26 rather than expecting identical status names. Football Manager’s FM23 Recruitment Revamp
That same FM23 overview described Extensive scouting as a fuller assessment by the recruitment team, after which the manager decides what to do. In any edition, use a completed report as decision support and consider whether the information is still current before acting.
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Keep opposition analysis separate from recruitment
Scouting also supports match preparation. FM26’s delegation guidance identifies opposition analysis as a task the Chief Scout can provide, but it serves a different purpose from finding transfer or youth targets. Keep recruitment searches focused on players you might sign and use opposition analysis to prepare for upcoming opponents.
If you cannot find scout priorities or active searches in FM26
Menu names from older editions may not match FM26. A community player has asked where to find scout priorities and players currently being scouted, but that question does not establish an authoritative menu path. Check the scouting and recruitment sections of the in-game interface for the current assignment and report views, and avoid following FM23 click-by-click directions as if they were verified for FM26. Sports Interactive Community discussion
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