Starting your own organization in Esports Manager 2026 is honestly one of the most enjoyable parts of the game. Instead of taking control of an existing team with established players and staff, you’re building everything from the ground up. Every contract you sign, every coach you hire, and every sponsor you land feels like another step toward creating a team that can eventually challenge the biggest organizations in the world.
The first few in-game months can feel overwhelming because there are so many systems thrown at you at once. You’ll need to manage your budget, recruit players, upgrade your facilities, negotiate sponsorships, and somehow prepare your roster for its first tournament. It’s easy to waste money early if you don’t know what each menu actually does.
The good news is that getting started is much simpler once you understand the order in which you should tackle everything. This guide walks you through the entire setup process, from creating your organization to preparing for your first official match.
Looking for advanced strategies? Once you’ve created your organization, be sure to check out our Hard Mode Guide for long-term roster building, training strategies, and sponsorship tips.
How to Create Esports Organization in Esports Manager 2026
Everything begins from the main menu.
Select New Game, then create your manager. This is the person who represents your organization throughout your save.
You’ll be given the option to either:
- Randomize your manager’s attributes.
- Customize your own stat distribution.
If you’re just starting out, there’s nothing wrong with using the randomized option. Experienced players may prefer building a manager that complements their preferred management style, but the choice won’t make or break your save.
Once you’re happy with your manager, continue to create your organization.
Name Your Organization and Choose the Difficulty
Next, you’ll need to give your esports organization a name before selecting the game’s difficulty.
This decision is more important than it first appears.
The difficulty setting doesn’t simply make matches harder—it also affects your starting resources, including:
- Starting budget
- Available staff
- Financial flexibility
- Overall early-game challenge
Higher difficulties leave much less room for mistakes, while easier settings provide enough money to experiment without immediately running into financial problems.
If this is your very first save, starting on an easier difficulty can help you learn the game’s management systems before taking on tougher challenges.
Choose Your Starting Roster Size
Before your organization officially launches, you’ll decide how many players you begin with.
If you choose fewer free agents during organization creation, you’ll need to recruit additional players yourself after the save begins.
Once you’ve finalized your settings, sign the formation document to officially establish your organization.
Congratulations—you now own your very first esports team.
Hire Essential Staff First
It’s tempting to jump straight into signing players, but take a moment to check your staff first.
A strong support team helps your roster improve much faster throughout the season.
One of the first hires worth making is an Analyst.
An Analyst provides valuable support for scouting opponents, preparing strategies, and improving overall team performance as your organization grows.
Later on, you’ll expand your coaching staff with specialists like coaches, psychologists, and physiotherapists, but an Analyst is an excellent early investment.
Recruit Players Through Scouting
Once your staff is sorted, it’s time to build your roster.
Open the Scouting menu to browse available players.
Before searching manually, use the filter options to make recruitment much easier.
The most useful filters early on are:
- Free Agents
- Player Roles
Free agents don’t require transfer fees, making them significantly cheaper than purchasing players from rival organizations.
This allows you to stretch your starting budget much further.
Rather than recruiting the first available names, take a few extra minutes comparing salaries, ratings, and long-term potential before making your decisions.
Keep an Eye on Your Budget
Before offering contracts, visit the Finances tab.
This screen controls how your money is distributed across different parts of the organization.
You’ll be able to adjust spending for areas such as:
- Transfers
- Wages
- Marketing
- Operating costs
These sliders determine how much money is available for each department.
If you plan on making several player signings immediately, you may want to temporarily allocate more funds toward transfers while reducing spending elsewhere.
Finding the right balance early can prevent financial headaches later in the season.
Offer Contracts to Your Players
Once you’ve found players you want, open their profile and select Contract.
You’ll need to decide:
- Contract length
- Weekly or monthly wage
- Overall salary offer
Send offers to every player needed for your starting lineup, along with a few substitutes if your budget allows.
Don’t be surprised if some players reject your first proposal.
Negotiation is a normal part of recruitment.
If a player requests slightly higher wages, consider whether they’re worth the investment before sending a revised contract.
Set Up Your Basecamp
With contract offers sent, head over to your Basecamp.
This is where your players train and develop throughout the season.
Early on, your facilities will be fairly basic.
Don’t worry too much about upgrading everything immediately.
Basecamp improvements become much easier once sponsorship money starts coming in.
For now, simply familiarize yourself with the available facilities and plan which upgrades you want to prioritize later.
Secure Your First Sponsors
Money is the lifeblood of every esports organization.
Without reliable income, expanding your team becomes much more difficult.
Visit the Sponsors menu and begin sending offers to Tier D sponsors.
Although these aren’t the biggest deals available, they’re much easier to secure during your first season and provide valuable income while your organization is still growing.
As your reputation improves, you’ll gradually unlock stronger sponsorship opportunities.
Progress Time and Manage Responses
After sending contract offers and sponsorship proposals, use Continue to advance time.
Several things may happen while time passes:
- Scouts discover additional players.
- Sponsors respond to your offers.
- Players negotiate their contracts.
- New opportunities appear in your inbox.
Make checking your email a regular habit.
If players request improved contracts, review their demands before deciding whether to accept, negotiate further, or move on to another candidate.
Likewise, accept sponsorship offers that fit your financial plans.
Remember that your organization can maintain up to six active sponsors, so try to fill those slots as your reputation grows.
Start Training Your Team
Once your roster is complete, it’s finally time to begin developing your players.
If you’re still learning the game’s systems, enabling Auto Schedule is perfectly fine.
It automatically organizes much of your team’s training without requiring constant manual adjustments.
You’ll also want to assign specific maps for practice.
Specializing in a smaller selection of maps early often produces better results than spreading your training across every available map.
As your players improve, you can gradually expand your map pool.
Upgrade Team Equipment
Before the competitive season begins, don’t forget to visit the Shop.
Here you’ll find various devices and equipment that improve your team’s overall setup.
Better equipment contributes to player development and helps create a more professional working environment for your roster.
You don’t need to purchase every upgrade immediately, but investing in quality equipment early is generally worthwhile if your budget allows.
Prepare for Your First Tournament
With your roster signed, sponsors secured, staff hired, and training underway, there’s only one thing left to do.
Advance time until your first tournament arrives.
Don’t worry too much if your first few matches don’t go exactly as planned.
Most successful organizations spend their opening months learning, improving, and slowly building chemistry between players.
Every tournament provides more experience, additional income, and opportunities to strengthen your organization for the future.
Creating your own organization in Esports Manager 2026 is all about laying a strong foundation. Resist the urge to spend every dollar immediately, focus on recruiting players that fit both your budget and long-term plans, and make sure your staff and sponsorships are working just as hard as your roster.
The opening weeks are more about preparation than winning trophies. As your players develop, your finances stabilize, and your facilities improve, you’ll have everything needed to turn a small startup organization into one of the biggest names in esports. Patience and smart planning early on will pay off far more than chasing quick success.