Tidied-up lobby & simpler league setup
An ended online league now disappears cleanly from the home screen (with a short note) — the same on iPhone, iPad and Android. And creating a season league is simpler: just one time to set, with the start defaulting to tonight instead of a week away.
- ▸A deleted online league drops out of the resume banner (instead of lingering) — on every platform.
- ▸League setup: one time instead of two — registration closes at the matchday-rhythm time.
- ▸The suggested start date is now tonight, no longer today + 7 days.
Your own manager name on Android
When connecting to the online backend, Android now asks for your manager name instead of signing you in as a fixed test user. The chosen name applies immediately across all your leagues.
- ▸New name field on the Android online connect screen.
- ▸The chosen name applies immediately, even for managers that already existed.
- ▸Season-league start date now suggests tonight instead of a week away, and no longer overwrites what you entered.
Tidied-up online leagues
When an online league is closed, it now disappears cleanly from your home screen — with a short “This league has ended” note, so you're never left wondering where your games went. Plus the Android version is back in sync with the current build, level with iPhone and iPad.
- ▸An ended online league drops out of the “resume” banner, with a one-time note instead of silently vanishing.
- ▸The “Play online” picker no longer lists ended leagues at all.
- ▸Android back in step: builds and runs the same code as iPhone/iPad.
Technical details
- The client detects deleted leagues via a 404 on the status poll and clears the local resume state (no backend/push changes). Android build repaired: game-core value types moved from named tuples to structs (Skip compatibility as an app dependency), macOS host shims, enum rawValue lookup.
One rulebook for every device
Under the hood, sponsorship, contract talks, stadium expansion and transfers now run through a single shared rulebook across iPhone, iPad and Android — in solo and online play alike. That means the same numbers and the same behaviour wherever you play. Sponsorship offers are now stable across devices (no more flicker) and are drawn from the original sponsor pool. Plus many more automated tests, so once something is fixed it stays fixed.
- ▸One shared rulebook: sponsorship, contracts, stadium and transfers compute identically on iPhone, iPad and Android — no more drift between platforms.
- ▸Stable sponsorship offers: offers no longer flicker and are the same on every device — with sponsor names from the original KICKER data.
- ▸More of a safety net: automated coverage of the game core was more than doubled, so regressions surface earlier.
Technical details
- The economy formulas (sponsor/contract/stadium/transfer) were consolidated into shared game-core engines — a single source instead of parallel copies across iOS views, the tribute-ui GameRepository and Android. A deterministic sponsor seed per (team, slot, matchday) keeps offers stable across devices. game-core test suite expanded from 15 to 33 tests; full run 155 tests green.
Tactics that stick — on every device
A focused polish for the online league: on Android tablet and phone your chosen game plan now sticks reliably. Switch from “controlled” to “defensive” or “offensive” in an online match and you’ll find exactly that setting next time you open it — and your team really plays to it on match day.
- ▸Online tactics stay put: on Android your game plan no longer resets to “controlled” — your setting persists until you change it yourself.
- ▸And it counts: the chosen tactic is passed to the match correctly, so your side really plays to your plan on match day.
- ▸iPhone and iPad were never affected — with this release Android tablet and phone catch up.
Technical details
- The cause was Android’s per-render online mirror rebuild: tactics was the only lineup parameter not yet held by a stable state binding. Fixed in the shared kicker-online-core package (tactic seed in build/apply) plus a stable binding in the Android adapter; iOS safeguarded against regression. 16 package unit tests green.
0.15: Online multiplayer, unified
The big online milestone: iPhone, iPad and Android now run the online league from a single code source — all the way down to the data layer. On top, a batch of improvements from two intense test days: a fair 0:4 rule for missed turns, a transfer market with affordable prices and purchase confirmation, real manager names everywhere, and a match-day lobby that fits up to six managers without scrolling.
- ▸New fairness rule: miss the kick-off without marking yourself ready and you forfeit 0:4 plus a fine — clearly shown when you next open the league.
- ▸A sensible transfer market: free agents now match your division. Listing a player asks for confirmation, and the list shows rating and strength.
- ▸Real manager names: title bar, manager results and lobby show the entered name everywhere instead of a generic placeholder.
- ▸Compact match-day lobby: up to 6 managers at a glance — status next to the name, buttons side by side, smaller countdown clock.
- ▸The Android welcome screen now fits without scrolling — even with the online banner.
- ▸Sponsor deals are exploit-proof: one contract per slot, enforced by the server.
- ▸The Kicker-Kurier respects the spoiler rule: before the first played day the paper stays empty — events appear in your own events screen first.
- ▸Quieter notifications: the league commissioner no longer gets messages about actions he triggered himself, and pushes stop landing on the wrong device after an account switch.
Technical details
- Consolidation complete (waves 1-3): shared package kicker-online-core with 40+ DTOs and the entire mirror construction (OnlineMirrorBuilder.build/apply with carry-over protection) for iOS + Android; guarded by 16 package unit tests and a backend e2e smoke script (backend 0.4.11-b85).
Creating an online league: one form, both platforms
The kick-off for unifying online multiplayer: the "create league" form now comes from exactly one code source on iPhone and Android — with the iPhone's clean card look on both devices. Android players also get the game-rules section on the phone for the first time: points per win and starting season can now be set at creation there too.
- ▸Creating an online league now looks identical on iPhone and Android — section cards, weekday picker, steppers and inputs in the same retro look.
- ▸Game rules (points per win, starting season) are now available on Android phones as well.
- ▸Same validation on both platforms: identical messages for a missing name, invalid time or a past registration deadline.
- ▸Line-up phase: iPhone now also warns when you mark yourself ready with too few players — instead of silently filling in a default eleven.
- ▸Match-day lobby: once everyone has set their line-up the lobby says so clearly — and any player can kick off the match day right away (iPhone now shows the ready counter too).
- ▸If your turn is already done, opening the online game on iPhone now takes you straight to the waiting lobby — like on Android, without the season banner and fixture detour.
- ▸The post-match-day flow is now identical on both platforms: pitch waiting scene → "results are in" → Kicker-Kurier — and the paper finally shows day-one events (windfall & co.) instead of a quiet-day page.
- ▸New fairness rule: miss the kick-off without marking yourself ready and you forfeit 0:4 plus a fine — clearly shown when you next open the league.
- ▸A sensible transfer market: free agents now match your division — affordable names in the fourth tier instead of unaffordable Bundesliga stars.
Technical details
- New shared ClassicOnlineCreateLeagueView + ClassicOnlineLeagueDraft (validation, cadence/ISO conversion) in KickerClassicPhoneUI; both apps drive it with their own backend client.
- New shared package kicker-online-core: 40+ online DTOs and the entire mirror construction (OnlineMirrorBuilder incl. carry-over protection against polling roll-backs) now come from one source on iPhone and Android — eliminating the main cause of platform-drift bugs.
0.14: One game, one codebase — readable everywhere
The milestone under the hood: every phone screen — from game setup through line-up, transfers and finances to online leagues — now comes from exactly one code source on iPhone and Android. On top, a big polish round from real-device testing: larger text throughout, the new team picker with big jerseys, and match days with smooth transitions and a full-screen stadium result view.
- ▸Fully shared codebase: iPhone and Android render every phone screen from one source — fix once, fixed everywhere.
- ▸Polish round from device testing: larger single-line text on 10+ screens.
- ▸Team picker and team-name/jersey screens with big jerseys and full-width color choice.
- ▸Match day: smooth transitions, full-screen stadium result view, no rotation ping-pong — then straight back to your squad hub.
- ▸The "More" menu is now identical on both platforms.
The shared codebase is complete — and the balls look the part
The last phone screens with duplicated code are gone: football-world selection, world confirmation, manager count and the club picker when joining an online league now share one source on iPhone and Android. The difficulty picker shows proper mini footballs in the classic panel pattern and explains what each level actually changes. An Android glitch (black bar above the welcome screen title) is fixed.
- ▸Game setup fully unified: world selection, world confirmation and manager count now share one code source on iPhone and Android.
- ▸Online leagues: joining uses the same club-picker screen as solo play — including who already claimed which club.
- ▸Difficulty picker: five mini footballs in the classic panel pattern, with honest hints on what gets harder.
- ▸The Android welcome screen sits flush at the top again — the black bar is gone.
- ▸Spring cleaning: about 60 orphaned code paths from old per-platform screens removed.
Every phone screen from a single source — solo and online
The big unification step is complete: statistics (all 11 categories), the transfer market (buy, sell, offers), the season record, line-up evaluation, the entire misc menu and the team-selection screen now come from the same code source on iPhone and Android — and online leagues use the same screens as solo play on both platforms. Fix it once, it's fixed everywhere.
- ▸Statistics, transfer market, season record, evaluation and misc menu: one shared source for iPhone and Android.
- ▸Online leagues on phones (iPhone AND Android) now use the same screens as solo play — including transfers and statistics.
- ▸Team selection unified: stacked jerseys, "Fussballgott" placeholder, OK requires a name — identical everywhere.
- ▸Calculations (season record, evaluation, player database) now live centrally in the shared game logic.
- ▸Internal cleanup: hundreds of lines of duplicated screen code removed.
One phone experience — iPhone and Android now share a single source
A big step against small differences: nearly all classic phone screens — tactics, positions, line-up, sponsoring, contracts, training camps, stadium and the full finance menu including football pools — now come from exactly the same code source on iPhone and Android. Fix something on one device and the other gets it instantly. In online leagues these shared screens now run on phones too (previously tablet-only). Also: the season announcement shows in its proper portrait look on phones again, and the two jerseys in team selection are stacked vertically — nice and big instead of squeezed.
- ▸Tactics, positions and line-up: one shared source for iPhone and Android (solo).
- ▸Sponsoring, contracts, training camps, stadium and finances (incl. credit, deposits and football pools) unified as well.
- ▸Online leagues on phones now use the same shared screens — your line-up draft is saved automatically when leaving.
- ▸Season announcement shows in portrait again on phones instead of the tablet layout.
- ▸Team selection (iPhone): home and away jerseys stacked and much bigger.
- ▸Consistent font and type sizes across all classic phone screens.
Tidied-up statistics screens on the phone
Statistics are far more readable on the phone now: the top-scorer list no longer repeats "goals" after the number, every player fits neatly on one line in the best-list, and the attendance table drops the stadium capacity on phones so each league fits in portrait. "Team of the Year" is now shown as a line-up on the pitch, the finance graph highlights profit (green) and loss (red) plus your current balance — and "Risers/Fallers of the Year" finally shows real values: players' cumulative season performance, just like the original.
- ▸Top-scorer list: just the number now — no more duplicate "goals" after the value.
- ▸Best-list: every player is guaranteed to fit on one line (name and club cleanly separated).
- ▸Risers/Fallers of the Year shows real values — cumulative season performance like the original KICKER.
- ▸Team of the Year as a line-up on the pitch instead of a plain list.
- ▸Attendance: stadium capacity dropped on phones so every league fits in portrait.
- ▸Finance graph polished: profit green, loss red, end point = current balance.
- ▸Applies to iPhone and Android alike, solo and online.
Leave an online league without leaving a ghost — plus portrait mode for phones
Leaving an online league (or being removed by the league commissioner) now cleanly removes you from the game right away: gone from the lobby, no more notifications — and the computer automatically takes over the orphaned club and plays it to the end. So a leaver no longer stalls the match evening for everyone else. On top of that, the phone shows the "My Team" stats in portrait again, and the Android phone now stays upright throughout like the iPhone — only the live match scenes briefly turn to landscape.
- ▸Leave an online league: you vanish from the lobby instantly and stop receiving that league's notifications.
- ▸The computer automatically takes over your club and keeps fielding it — the match evening simply carries on without you.
- ▸Works the same way when the league commissioner removes a member.
- ▸Phone: the "My Team" stats screen is back in portrait instead of landscape.
- ▸Android phone now stays in portrait throughout like the iPhone — only live match scenes briefly turn to landscape.
Your online club name now sticks for good
Renaming your club in an online league sometimes snapped the new name back to the old one. Not anymore: the changed name is saved instantly and for good — on iPhone, iPad and Android alike.
- ▸Rename your online club: the new name stays put immediately and no longer snaps back to the old one.
- ▸The changed name is saved right away — even while the league refreshes in the background every second.
- ▸Works the same on every device: iPhone, iPad and Android.
Push notifications, a more stable online matchday & lots of phone polish
The 0.13 series brings real push notifications to iPhone AND Android — and on Android now even while the app is open. It also thoroughly debugs the first real online matchday: correct points, no more accidentally skipping a matchday and a tidy transfer market. On top of that, lots of phone polish (a portrait German-Cup image, a readable finance overview and half-time board again) and a built-in crash diagnostic.
- ▸Push notifications on iPhone & Android: "matchday finished", end of season and bids for your own players — deliberately without a result spoiler.
- ▸Android now shows notifications while the app is open (foreground), not just in the background.
- ▸More stable online matchday: correct points (win/draw/bonus), no more accidental skipping and no endless re-playing.
- ▸Online transfer market: the real club name instead of "free agent", a clear purchase message and just a single "Back".
- ▸German-Cup announcement on the phone is now portrait — no longer cropped down to bare turf.
- ▸Finance overview and half-time board on the phone are fully legible again.
- ▸Built-in crash diagnostic on Android: the stack trace is available on demand in the build info — no PC required.
v0.12.191Beta
26 June 2026More stable online multiplayer, latecomers welcome & tidier phone menus
Roundup of the 0.12.18x series: online mode on Android now has a per-device identity — no more joiners accidentally becoming the league commissioner. New players can join a season league even after the registration deadline and take over a free club in the running season. Plus tidier phone menus: a clear edition choice, a single "More" menu with icons, and the "Misc" area online too.
- ▸Android online: per-device identity — joiners no longer accidentally become the league commissioner.
- ▸Season league: latecomers can join after the registration deadline and take over a free club in the running season.
- ▸Online "Misc" filled in on the Android phone (about, top-8 manager list, build info).
- ▸Clear phone editions: Classic & Classic PLUS on the phone, the Tribute edition stays tablet-only.
- ▸Tidied "More" menu on the phone: one overview with icons, one tap straight to the item (icons across all areas in Classic PLUS).
v0.12.181Beta
25 June 2026Online multiplayer grows up — season league & game night, German Cup, one-tap resume and full iPad/Android parity
The whole 0.12 series in one entry: the online mode has become a full multiplayer experience. There are two ways to play — the asynchronous season league (everyone sets up independently, kickoff at the scheduled time or by the commissioner) and the synchronous game night (all together live, with a live broadcast and a pause guard when someone drops). Plus the German Cup online, a resume banner that jumps straight into your last online game from the start screen, and full parity between iPad and Android thanks to shared display building blocks. Android additionally gains voice chat, push notifications and cloud save.
- ▸Online season league (asynchronous): set up independently, kickoff at the scheduled time or by the commissioner — with a "results are in" notice, the Kicker courier, tables and a fresh round.
- ▸Online game night (synchronous): everyone live together, a fixed flow from the lobby through the commissioner question to the matches, with a live pause when someone drops.
- ▸Every player decides for themselves: "my match only", "all matches" or "results only".
- ▸German Cup now online too — showing both teams' honours in the opener.
- ▸Start-screen banner "Current online game": one tap back into your last league, no detours — even shows whether new results are in.
- ▸Full iPad/Android parity of the online screens thanks to shared display building blocks; your own and fellow players' clubs shown in home-jersey colours in results and the table.
- ▸Android catches up: voice chat, push notifications and cloud save slots.
- ▸Tribute look polished further — tile main menu, large type, "Back" top-left everywhere.
Tribute edition polished on the Android tablet — modern layout, large type, one-tap back everywhere
The modern Tribute edition now feels complete on the Android tablet: a tidy tile main menu with lovingly drawn pixel icons for every area, consistently larger type throughout and the same top-left "Back" button on every sub-screen. The former "More" menu shows its entries directly as tiles, with the main menu always staying on the left. The farewell screen now shows total and current play time — on iOS too.
- ▸Modern tile main menu with detailed pixel icons for squad, league & stats, club and transfer market.
- ▸"More" tidied up: the misc entries appear directly as tiles in the content area, with the main menu always on the left.
- ▸Consistent navigation: "Back" now sits top-left in the title bar everywhere — same spot on every sub-screen.
- ▸Consistently larger, uniform type across all Tribute menus and screens — easy to read on the tablet.
- ▸More prominent edition picker with edition-specific jerseys, evaluation fits on one page, event texts in the right half of the screen.
- ▸Farewell screen showing total and current play time (on iOS too).
Original edition on the Android tablet — faithful 1990 Atari ST look
The classic/original edition (1.82) now looks exactly like its iPad model on the Android tablet: the whole game in the Atari ST look on the green pitch — main menu, every submenu (finances with loans, fixed deposits, pools, transfer market, stadium, statistics, league info, misc) and the entire matchday flow from announcement through the results overview to the table. Plus noticeably smoother, livelier match scenes.
- ▸Complete original edition in the iPad look on the Android tablet — every menu, submenu and flow screen faithfully on the pitch.
- ▸Classic finance screens: take/repay loans, fixed deposits, money transfers and the real football-pools betting slip with stake entry.
- ▸Matchday flow 1:1: fixture announcement, results overview across all leagues, matchday table with previous-week ranking.
- ▸Smoother, more realistic match scenes — soft runs and passes, the ball rolling out, a visible flight curve, a front sliding tackle on fouls.
- ▸iOS: the finance overview is back as a fixed step in the matchday flow (faithful to the Atari ST KICKER).
Android arrives — the full KICKER now on Android smartphones
The next big step: KICKER now runs completely on Android smartphones — the same solo manager, the same formulas, the same match scenes as on iOS. Back up and restore cloud saves, voice chat during game nights directly in the app, faithful match replays via the shared package. iPhone and iPad still via TestFlight, Android as a directly installable APK.
- ▸Full solo manager for Android smartphones — main menu, lineup, transfers, finances, league, cup and penalty shootout.
- ▸Cloud saves on Android: automatic backup after every matchday, restore with a single tap.
- ▸Voice chat during game nights on Android (LiveKit): built into the app, no external tools.
- ▸Match replay faithfully ported — ball Z-order fixed, final scoreboard as a centred panel.
- ▸Backend migrated to Swift 6 — stable CI, Season seed crash permanently fixed.
- ▸Android as a directly installable APK, no Google Play dependency.
The commissioner decides: highlights question before kickoff
The league commissioner now gets the classic solo-game question when pressing ready: "Show match highlights in clips?" — the answer applies to all players. Also: the matchday announcement no longer appears twice at season start, and the waiting screen now says "Kicking off soon!".
- ▸Highlights question for the commissioner when pressing ready — once per matchday, solo-game wording, applies to all devices.
- ▸The matchday announcement on day 1 of a new league only appears once now.
- ▸Waiting screen: "Kicking off soon!" instead of "Matchday in progress".
Match-night sequence locked down
Follow-up to 0.7.6: two background races could scramble the matchday sequence — the matchday jumped straight into the game, skipping the lobby and the Kicker-Kurier. The order is now locked: lobby (at least 5 seconds) → waiting screen → Kicker-Kurier → match scenes → table → next matchday announcement.
- ▸The minimum lobby display now works reliably — the timestamp is set the moment it opens, not when it renders.
- ▸The auto-replay mechanism (for missed matchdays) no longer interferes with live match nights.
- ▸The Kicker-Kurier appears before the match scenes again, not after.
Online match night polished: lobby, highlights for everyone, clearer hub
Four fixes from multiplayer testing: the lobby showing everyone's ready status now always stays visible for at least five seconds (it used to flash by on fast starts), the commissioner's highlights decision now applies to all devices, the scene-picker screen no longer appears incorrectly during match nights, and the online hub shows the league name in its title bar — no more confusing it with the solo main menu.
- ▸The lobby stays visible for at least 5 seconds — even when everyone is ready instantly.
- ▸“Show highlights” is now stored server-side: the commissioner's choice applies to all players, non-commissioners see the status in the lobby.
- ▸Match nights never show the scene-picker screen anymore — it belongs to season leagues only.
- ▸The online hub shows the league name in the pink title bar instead of “Main menu”.
- ▸The ready signal is only sent once the lineup has actually reached the server.
Hotfix: online match display back in landscape
A quick fix from live testing: since 0.7.4 the match display and pre/post screens in online mode were stuck in portrait on iPhone — an orientation race between the new hub and the match flow. Everything rotates cleanly into landscape again.
- ▸The online match flow (scoreboard, match scenes, pre/post screens) runs in landscape on iPhone again.
- ▸Root cause fixed: the main-menu hub was overriding the match flow's landscape lock on exit.
iPhone polish: icon bar, team cards and visible buttons
Polish straight from live testing: league details get a compact icon action bar instead of four stacked buttons, the matchday opener shows both teams as neat stacked cards with table position and points split, team selection no longer cuts off BACK/OK, the sign-up lobby wraps the league name cleanly, and voice chat no longer overlaps the READY button.
- ▸League details: actions as a row of icon tiles (Back · Club · Lobby · End) — the key action glows yellow.
- ▸Matchday opener: home and away cards stacked with a “VERSUS” divider, kit-coloured frames, table position and points — identical solo and online.
- ▸Team selection: tighter layout, BACK and OK always visible.
- ▸Sign-up lobby: league name and mode on two lines instead of clipped.
- ▸The voice chat widget now sits above the READY button instead of on top of it.
Online league polished on iPhone — six screens overhauled
A big iPhone clean-up for online mode: the create-league form uses the full width, league details no longer wrap badly, team selection stacks the kit pickers cleanly, the online hub now looks exactly like solo play (button at the bottom, title bar covering the Dynamic Island), manager results are twice as large — and while waiting for the matchday an animated pixel match scene plays with goals and a live scoreboard.
- ▸Create league: season league/match night, cadence and weekdays fill the full iPhone width — no dead space on the left.
- ▸League details fully iPhone-ready: code, share, members, difficulty and buttons without broken line wraps.
- ▸Team selection: home and away kits stacked with full colour names; redundant hint text removed.
- ▸Online hub matches solo play: full-width READY button at the bottom, pink title bar covers the Dynamic Island, matchday/season/team status visible.
- ▸New animated waiting screen: pixel pitch with passing, shots on goal, GOAL! flash and a live scoreboard.
- ▸Manager results on iPhone at twice the font size.
The Kicker-Kurier becomes a real league newspaper
The tabloid newspaper in online mode now covers EVERYTHING that happens to your fellow managers: injuries, red cards, training camps, windfalls, departures, signings, TV money and more — each story exactly once, on the matchday it happens. No more endless repeats for long-term injuries. Also: the voice chat now only appears on the main menu instead of on every screen.
- ▸The Kicker-Kurier now covers every event of every manager — not just squad status, but money events, departures, gift players, Toto luck and TV money.
- ▸Each headline appears exactly once: on the matchday the event happened. A four-week injury no longer fills four editions.
- ▸Story texts come straight from the original Atari ST data (EREIGNIS.KDT) and the match reports — with player names and DM amounts.
- ▸The voice chat indicator and mute toggle now only appear on the main menu — the connection keeps running in the background (iPhone + iPad).
Technical details
- New backend endpoint GET /api/leagues/:id/events/all?matchDay=N — GameEventLog of all human clubs with club/manager context.
- OnlineSportNewspaperView loads asynchronously via OnlineGameRepository.newspaperEvents(); falls back to the quiet-day article on error.
Fair sponsor offers in online mode
A small but important fairness fix for the online league: sponsor offers are now handed out centrally by the server — the same offers per matchday, identical for every manager. No more re-rolling by leaving and re-entering the menu. Solo play is unchanged.
- ▸Online sponsor offers are now server-authoritative: fixed offers per matchday, identical for every manager.
- ▸No more re-rolling by leaving and reopening the sponsor menu.
- ▸Original values unchanged (durations and amounts per the KICKER formula), sponsor names from the original data.
- ▸Solo mode unchanged — the fix only affects online multiplayer.
The iPhone version is complete — the whole of KICKER in your pocket
The big milestone of 0.7: the iPhone version is now complete — every screen and game mode, from the main menu through line-up, transfer market and stadium to league, cup, stats and the penalty shootout, fully built for iPhone in the Atari-ST look. On top of that the big moments land: real winners' anthems, atmospheric crowd chants and self-explanatory full-screen artwork for season and cup outcomes — plus a more faithful DFB cup and a training camp that visibly matters again.
- ▸The iPhone version is complete: every screen and game mode — main menu, line-up, transfer market, stadium, league, cup, stats, penalty shootout — fully built for iPhone.
- ▸A real winners' anthem for league titles and cup wins (DFB & UEFA).
- ▸Stadium atmosphere: crowd chants on promotion, won relegation play-offs and cup progress — a mournful sting on relegation or a cup exit.
- ▸Season and cup outcomes as self-explanatory full-screen artwork (champion, promotion/relegation, play-offs, advance/eliminated) — solo and online.
- ▸Over 40 new hand-crafted pixel-art images for the Tribute Edition: atmospheric backdrops for events and match scenes on iPhone, plus full-screen artwork for every season and cup outcome (iPad + iPhone).
- ▸Faithful DFB cup: a first-leg draw leads to a second leg, with penalties only in the return leg or the final.
- ▸Training camps matter again: form, fitness and technique improve week by week at the camp.
- ▸The penalty shootout now renders properly on iPhone too — goal, keeper and ball.
- ▸Polish: correct year formatting (1990, not 1.990), a tidier cheat overview, single buttons centred everywhere.
Online league now on iPhone too — plus automatic iCloud backup
KICKER is now a real iPhone game: you found, join and manage online leagues right on your phone — the entire league form is built for iPhone. And so your rise to the top is never lost, the app now backs your savegame up to iCloud automatically and restores it on any of your devices with a single tap.
- ▸Found, join and manage online leagues — fully built for iPhone.
- ▸Automatic iCloud backup of your savegame, in the background, no account hassle.
- ▸Restore with a single tap — continue on iPhone and iPad from the same point.
- ▸Flip through several online leagues comfortably (league pager).
- ▸Lots of polish across menus, statistics and the transfer market.
- ▸Sponsor offers now show reliably on iPhone too.
- ▸Transfer screens (selling players, removing from the list) tidy in portrait.
- ▸New atmospheric pixel-art backgrounds for injuries and the closed transfer market (iPad + iPhone).
- ▸Stadium atmosphere with sound: crowd chants on promotion, won relegation play-offs and cup progress — and a fitting mournful sting on relegation or a cup exit.
- ▸Season and cup outcomes as self-explanatory full-screen artwork (promotion, relegation, play-offs, advance/eliminated) — solo and online.
- ▸DFB cup fix: a first-leg draw now correctly leads to a second leg instead of an early penalty shootout.
- ▸Final polish: single «Continue» buttons now sit neatly centred everywhere (iPhone & iPad).
KICKER now runs on iPhone too — the whole manager in your pocket
The biggest step since online mode: KICKER used to be iPad-only — now you play the full manager on iPhone too. Every screen — lineup, transfer market, stadium, finances, tables, statistics — was rebuilt for the small display, in the signature Atari-ST look with CRT flair. Before kickoff «Der Kicker-Kurier» flips through the headlines like a tabloid sports paper, and on game night you talk to each other live via voice chat.
- ▸The full manager now runs natively on iPhone — every menu and screen rebuilt for the small display.
- ▸Dedicated design system in Atari-ST style with CRT scanlines and a tab bar.
- ▸For matches the iPhone rotates to landscape — with a friendly rotate prompt.
- ▸«Der Kicker-Kurier»: a tabloid sports paper with headlines before every match replay.
- ▸Voice chat on game night — talk live while the matchdays play out.
The first truly playable online mode — bring your friends to the pitch
You can now play KICKER with friends across multiple iPads. A full season together: everyone manages their own club, the server simulates the matchdays, and everyone sees the same match replay in sync. Season finale with champion celebration, DFB cup with final-day drama, manager statistics and lots of love for the details. Plus the first feedback from real multi-player testing: every human club gets unique players, all co-players show in their own jersey colour, and the home-menu button reliably shows the same current matchday for everyone.
- ▸A full online season with friends across multiple iPads — synchronised match replay for all.
- ▸Season finale with the classic closing screen and a DFB cup with final-day drama.
- ▸Unique players per manager club — no more duplicate squads.
- ▸All human co-players in their own home-jersey colour in tables and results.
- ▸Home-menu button reliably shows the same current matchday for everyone.
- ▸Many fairness fixes: bench players don't score, gift players have real names.
Online multiplayer milestone — a whole season together, in sync across several devices
Online mode comes into its own. Game night is stable, the DFB cup runs through online from start to finish, and a clean lobby flow with an «all ready» splash is part of it. Plus a season finale with champion celebration like the original, manager results and tables in real jersey colours, form and energy curves in the player detail, new defensive and offside statistics, and far more life on the pitch.
- ▸Stable game night and a clean lobby flow with an «all ready» splash.
- ▸DFB cup runs through online completely — from the round of 16 to the final.
- ▸Season finale with champion celebration, final tables and team of the year like the 1990 original.
- ▸Manager results and tables in every co-player's real home-jersey colour.
- ▸Form and energy curves plus new defensive and offside statistics in the player detail.
- ▸More life on the pitch: offside, blocks, tackles, one-twos and DREAM-GOAL long shots.
Hot-seat multiplayer, cups down to the penalty shootout — and the first online leagues
The solo game becomes a multiplayer experience. Hot-seat multiplayer on the same device, the UEFA Cup with an animated final and penalty shootout, the DFB cup online, more financial and cup depth, living players with form and energy — and the first online steps: optional cloud backup via Apple Sign-In and the first playable online-league alpha against real opponents, including Toto, training camp, tactics and sponsors.
- ▸Hot-seat multiplayer on the same device, including selling your own players on the transfer market.
- ▸UEFA Cup with an animated final and sprite penalty shootout.
- ▸DFB cup online: announcement, animated highlights, penalties and an outcome screen.
- ▸Optional iCloud backup via Apple Sign-In — the groundwork for online mode.
- ▸First online-league alpha against real opponents: Toto, training camp, tactics, sponsors.
- ▸Themed pixel-art backgrounds plus lots of UX and bug-fix polish.
v0.1.0Sandbox
12 April 2026The playground — from the first TestFlight build to the first fully playable season
The beginning: KICKER returns as a faithful tribute to the 1990 Atari ST classic. In this early phase the game grew from the very first TestFlight build into the first season playable from start to finish — with a complete game engine, finances, cards, injuries, save & load and countless lovingly rebuilt original details from Dirk Weigand's BASIC code.
- ▸First TestFlight build — KICKER runs again, in the original Atari-ST look with original sounds.
- ▸Full game engine: season, league, cup, finances, random events.
- ▸Finances, cards, injuries, save & load.
- ▸Hundreds of original details ported from the BASIC source code.
- ▸For the first time a full season is playable from start to finish.