New FIFA based Challenge League

The Challenge League is coming to the end of season 3 and preparing for a reboot as we move on to FIFA 19. We are spreading word to see who is interested in playing.

In short, you buy and sell players, build a squad, then pick a team/tactics to play matches that are simulated on FIFA19 (CPU v CPU). The games are streamed live on Twitch, so you can also watch your games (and other teams for scouting purposes!!) each week.

Think Football Manager, but with the game engine being FIFA 19.

Players can be traded within the league with other managers, but each week you will also get randomly generated offers for two of your players. On top of this, you also get to buy two players from out of the league each week.

All player valuations are done based on the TM website http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/detailsuche/spielerdetail/suche.
Players values are frozen at the start of each season so that their value remains unchanged throughout that season. All offers from outside the league are based on the frozen value, and all purchases of players outside the league are based on the current TM value.

If you want to know a bit more, have a look here:

https://www.606v2.com/f265-the-miky-challenge-league
https://www.606v2.com/t66501-challenge-league-rules

We have the final week of the existing game still to play, so you can also take a look on Twitch to get a feel for it.

https://www.twitch.tv/hero606v2

The new league will start with a low level of players and build, with FIFA 19 rating caps. The aim is that these caps will increase each season so that the league grows with them. We also plan to move on to each new version of FIFA, each year, which offers the options of buying for future potential too!

At the moment, it looks like being League 2 teams, with some degree of a mini-draft to start shaping your side. Budgets and ratings cap will then be set to what is appropriate to the teams we have in the league.

This page is to gauge interest, so please sign up below.

Signed Up
1. Afro
2. Hero
3. Fluxy
4. Olly
5. Bam
6. Marky
7. Nadz
8. TAB
9. Azzy
10. Ska
11. Twist
12. Soddy
69. Trebs
14. Rof
15. Nando
16. Dolph

Well I better sign up I suppose!

I've learnt never to assume anything

May as well do another season...

I would like to participate

It would be rubbish without me

I'll partake

One comment on JA about this to answer;

That Twitch stream is an interesting idea, but gives FIFA's way of judging player ability too much stock in how players build their sides imo.

I don't know what the OP stat is this year but, in previous years, forming a team full of fast players or players with high strength stats would invariably yield good results.

Is that FIFA's judge of players as opposed to Fan's.

Marky wrote:One comment on JA about this to answer;

That Twitch stream is an interesting idea, but gives FIFA's way of judging player ability too much stock in how players build their sides imo.

I don't know what the OP stat is this year but, in previous years, forming a team full of fast players or players with high strength stats would invariably yield good results.

My tactics and transfer plans have been exposed

My response would be not too knock it without trying it. We had the same worries, but it has proved not too be the case. What has happened is that with good tactics, a weaker well set-up team can beat a team of galacticos. Speed and strength stats have not had the impact we worried about as the game is played entirely by the computer. It doesn't have the same impact as when an actual person is playing.

Voting leagues are too subjective to personal opinion. There were sceptics when we started but it has proved a huge success and eradicated the arguments by removing these differing subjective opinions.

The other benefit is that in voting leagues, we tend to give too much of a rating to the up and coming hipster players. Using FIFA has tempered this. Moving to new versions of FIFA each year still allows you to find the next big names, but they don't get the rating just from being bigged up. They establish themselves and then FIFA recognises this by boosting their rating

I would say, give it a try and if you don't like it, then fair enough. But don't rule it out without trying it first.

Also tell Boo to just create a shortcut to the league. The rest of the navigation will come quickly enough

Being able to navigate a website should be a pre requisite for entry to the league

Would have kept out CF at least

Sign me up

Its funny what you get used too.

I always find it hard to find the latest posts on ja606, and feel this site is set-up in a much simpler, understandable way. But people on ja606 presumably find it the other way around

I like ja in that it is very much exactly like the old bbc 606 site we all used to use. There are some right weirdos there tho

https://www.ja606.co.uk/articles/viewArticle/381092

Is that what Olly calls himself over there

Actually Olly would have been more interested in the dwarves

It's worth saying that we have one round of games left in season 3, so they could always watch some of those games to get a feel for the game play.

I will add this to the main topic above also

It seems an interesting concept and I like the idea of being able to watch the games, count me in gentlemen.

Welcome sir

Do you like to be known as Boo, TAB or Take a boo?

Cheers buddy

I can be whoever you like, although TAB seems to be the norm.

Will have a snoop through the current format to familiarise myself, when are you planning on kicking off the new season?

Take a boo wrote:Cheers buddy

I can be whoever you like, although TAB seems to be the norm.

Will have a snoop through the current format to familiarise myself, when are you planning on kicking off the new season?

I think it'll be next week when we assign teams, and then start the following week.

This week will be about the final game of the season and the race for the title.

Afro meet TAB, who supports Liverpool and and his favourite Pool player is Dean Lovren.

TAB meet afro, who supports Everton and his favourite Everton player is Tony Hibbert.

Let the Merseyside fantasy fifa league wars begin

Nothing against Liverpool fans.

Half my family are ones.




TAB's name deleted from the signed up list....

nadeem2099 wrote:Afro meet TAB, who supports Liverpool and and his favourite Pool player is Dean Lovren.

TAB meet afro, who supports Everton and his favourite Everton player is Tony Hibbert.

Let the Merseyside fantasy fifa league wars begin

Good old Dean Lovren.

Marky wrote:

nadeem2099 wrote:Afro meet TAB, who supports Liverpool and and his favourite Pool player is Dean Lovren.

TAB meet afro, who supports Everton and his favourite Everton player is Tony Hibbert.

Let the Merseyside fantasy fifa league wars begin

Good old Dean Lovren.

He must love being the brother of someone who should be recognised as one of the best defenders in the world

Nadz

Dean Lovren = Best. Player. Ever.

Cool, cheers Afro. Has it been confirmed we will be using League 2 teams? I

I'll likely have a million other questions but will leave them until the new league is underway, who's likely to be crowned champion this season?

Take a boo wrote:Nadz

Dean Lovren = Best. Player. Ever.

Cool, cheers Afro. Has it been confirmed we will be using League 2 teams? I

I'll likely have a million other questions but will leave them until the new league is underway, who's likely to be crowned champion this season?

It's a three way tussle for the title as 2 points separate 1st to 3rd. Afro was nailed on to win it with 1 game left but lost to Olly last week who now goes into the set of final games as favorite and still unbeaten throughout this season. I'm in 3rd still with a chance but it's an outside shot.

Marky - response for Renegade's question on people just taking the best FIFA players who are cheap on TM.

Yes they do. We went the TM route for valuations a long time ago, regardless of FIFA. It clearly has its weaknesses as older players are cheaper. We have just learnt to live with that tbh as there is no other solution that doesn't become subjective to one or a few people's opinions.

What we have found with FIFA though is that the older players tend to slow down and be less effective. Iniesta is the case example. 87 rated on FIFA and dirt cheap. Three managers have tried and failed to get the best out of him on FIFA. He just doesn't have the legs anymore.

So if anything, FIFA has brought it more in line with market values than we had before in our voting league

Hero wrote:

Take a boo wrote:Nadz

Dean Lovren = Best. Player. Ever.

Cool, cheers Afro. Has it been confirmed we will be using League 2 teams? I

I'll likely have a million other questions but will leave them until the new league is underway, who's likely to be crowned champion this season?

It's a three way tussle for the title as 2 points separate 1st to 3rd. Afro was nailed on to win it with 1 game left but lost to Olly last week who now goes into the set of final games as favorite and still unbeaten throughout this season. I'm in 3rd still with a chance but it's an outside shot.

Could have wrapped it up last week, but we bottled it!!

Afro wrote:Marky - response for Renegade's question on people just taking the best FIFA players who are cheap on TM.

Yes they do. We went the TM route for valuations a long time ago, regardless of FIFA. It clearly has its weaknesses as older players are cheaper. We have just learnt to live with that tbh as there is no other solution that doesn't become subjective to one or a few people's opinions.

What we have found with FIFA though is that the older players tend to slow down and be less effective. Iniesta is the case example. 87 rated on FIFA and dirt cheap. Three managers have tried and failed to get the best out of him on FIFA. He just doesn't have the legs anymore.

So if anything, FIFA has brought it more in line with market values than we had before in our voting league

It's also short termism, yes you get an early advantage but those players on TM are only going to depreciate in value so other managers who've bought for the future will quickly surpass the codgers.

Ooh exciting finish, may try and catch the games if I get a chance.

Will have to do some research although I like the fact that some of the golden oldies will actually be of value in this format!

Take a boo wrote:Ooh exciting finish, may try and catch the games if I get a chance.

Will have to do some research although I like the fact that some of the golden oldies will actually be of value in this format!

A few have been decent, Chiellini and Thiago Silva both have mainstays for Afro and I respectively. David Silva for me as well has had games where he produced some moments of magic although a couple of managers prior couldn't get him to work.

Hello. My name is Azzy Mahmood. I'll take Colchester United. Prepare to die.

Azzy wrote:Hello. My name is Azzy Mahmood. I'll take Colchester United. Prepare to die.

Talking about Golden Oldies

Azzy I run this town now #unbeatenseason

Azzy - you have joined a parallel universe where Olly is top, unbeaten and favourite to win the league, and Jordan Henderson is a star player.

Good Golly I'm Olly wrote:Azzy I run this town now #unbeatenseason

So having six fingers on each hand finally paid off eh?

I'm still trying to work out if I would have preferred Liverpool to win the Champions League last season or Olly to go unbeaten and win the Challenge league

Kind of like asking whether I'd like my testicles carved out with a spoon or a spork

Wow howdi Azzy, how did you hear about this if you don't mind me asking?

SKY SPORTS NEWS LATEST:

New Colchester United owner Azzy Mahmood was seen giving Michael Owen and Jonathan Woodsman a guided tour of the JobServe Community Stadium today, as he prepares to lead the team to greater heights in the latest iteration of the Challenge League.

"I've been told that Golden Oldies are worth their weight in gold in this league," said Azzy. "And there are no better examples of that than Michael and Jonathan. They won the title with me back in 2006 and we'll do so again in 2018."

Hero wrote:Wow howdi Azzy, how did you hear about this if you don't mind me asking?

I had a PM from someone, which sent me an email. The rest, as they say, is history.

BamBam wrote:I'm still trying to work out if I would have preferred Liverpool to win the Champions League last season or Olly to go unbeaten and win the Challenge league

Kind of like asking whether I'd like my testicles carved out with a spoon or a spork

I quote Gary Neville, when asked whether he'd rather Man City or Liverpool won the league (the year Gerrard slipped over giving the ball to Demba Ba)

"It's like being asked which one of my best mate's I'd like my wife to run off with"

Hero wrote:Wow howdi Azzy, how did you hear about this if you don't mind me asking?

I might have had something to do with it....

PM bombed a load of people

Afro wrote:I quote Gary Neville, when asked whether he'd rather Man City or Liverpool won the league (the year Gerrard slipped over giving the ball to Demba Ba)

"It's like being asked which one of my best mate's I'd like my wife to run off with"

Option C: Ryan Giggs has had it off with her already.

Are you genuinely signing up Azzy? Be good if you do

Will go along way to boosting our required quota of half Belgian, half Canadian, half English people.

And of Baggies

Can we make Luka Modric Azzy's star player?

1. Yes, I'm signing up. Need to show you lot how to beat that inbred scamp.

2. There are three types of people in this world. One that can count, and one that can't.

3. Luka Modric remains bang average, he was towed through the WC by Rakitic, and Perisic and Rebic did the hard yards. All he does is sit in the middle of the park, fidget with his crappy hair, and ponce about looking all galactico. I'd rather have Hendo.

You'll be pleased to know that he hasn't exactly shone on the FIFA league either