Massive success for FM2009 YouTube premiere

Videos viewed by over 165,000 users and ranked as No.1 and No.2 in YouTube's Most Viewed category in the UK.

SEGA Europe has announced that its YouTube video announcements for Football Manager 2009 have been viewed by over 165,000 users, highlighting the tremendous popularity of the football management series.

The two videos achieved the No.1 and No.2 slots in YouTube's Most Viewed category for the UK and the Sports Interactive channel on YouTube was the most viewed channel across the UK YouTube.

"It's great to finally be able to announce the new features for the Football Manager series," said Miles Jacobson, Studio Director at Sports Interactive. "Making a web TV show to do this was a bit of a gamble, but one that has definitely paid off looking at the stats we've seen so far, and the feedback we've had so far on the new features has been incredibly positive, which is exciting to see."

The biggest new feature shown off in the videos is the match engine which now brings each virtual match to life in full 3D, complete with motion captured animations for each player.

Football Manager 2009 for PC and Mac, and Football Manager Handheld 2009 for PSP are set for release on November 14.