How to Fix Football Manager 2009 errors and problems

There are a few aspects which can make the Football Manager 2009 copy you have malfunction, but we have the answer via the official FM 2009 website. So if you have any of these problems with your Football Manager copy, we have the error fix:

Problem #1: "I installed through Steam and cannot start the game or create a shortcut, or running without Steam being active"

Fix solving: If installed via Steam, you can find the game executable (exe) at the following location: C:\Program Files\Steam\Steamapps\Common\Football Manager 2009. If you double click this the game will launch, you can also create a shortcut to this location on your desktop.

Problem #2: "I installed through Steam and now I get an annoying block of colour on my screen (bottom right hand corner)"

Fix solving: In steam click the icon "settings", click the tab "in game" and untick the "enable steam community" and you have fixed it.

Problem #3: You are receiving the error: "FM2009 could not run as ‘facegen’ was unable to initialize!"

Fix solving: Please install the Patch, and ensure your graphics drivers are up to date

If you are having other problems with Football Manager 2009, see how to:
- Fix Failed to set up graphics system message
- Fix Application Error problem
- Fix Football Manager 2009 installation problems

Fix Application Error problem in Football Manager 2009

If when launching the game you receive the following Error: “FM.exe application error. The application has failed to initialize correctly (0xC0150002). Click on OK to stop the application” we have the problem on how to fix that from happening.

It's not a big problem, it is just that you have to update your Microsoft Dot.Net framework in order for your Football Manager 2009 copy to work. Download and install it from the official website here.

If you are having other problems with Football Manager 2009, see how to:
- Fix Failed to set up graphics system message
- Fix Football Manager 2009 installation problems
- Fix other Football Manager 2009 errors

Fix Failed to set up graphics system message in Football Manager 2009

On rare occasions it might happen for you to get a message "Cannot run game: Failed to set up graphics system" in Football Manager 2009 but that is easy to fix.

The first reason why you get this message could be that your DirectX version is outdated. Unless you are 100% sure you have the latest DirectX version installed on your computer, download it from the official Microsoft website (click here).

If this does not solve your problem and you still get the same error when you start the game, make sure that you have the latest raphics driver, you can do this by visiting the computer manufacturer website, or by visiting the graphics card manufacturing website. Updating these will make your FM 2009 copy work if not DirectX was the problem.

If you are having other problems with Football Manager 2009, see how to:
- Fix Installation problems
- Fix Application Error problem
- Fix other Football Manager 2009 errors

How to fix Football Manager 2009 installation problems

There are a few reported problems when the Football Manager 2009 installation does not work as it should. If you get errors while you are installing the game and you can't fix that, here is what you have to do in order to solve the problem:

1. Download the official FM 2009 fix file from the SI website here.
2. Unzip the contents of the archive to your desktop.
3. Double click the FM09Fix.exe file.
4. Extract the files anywhere, pressing Install will place them on the desktop, this is the default behaviour. Two files will be extracted – Launcher.exe and Activator.exe
5. Double click Launcher.exe and you will see a dialog box prompting you for your license key.
6. Enter your license key into the dialog.
7. Press OK - then wait 30-60 seconds and you will receive a second message.

If your message reads: "Activation completed successfully. Please try to run the game." Open the game and run it.

If the activation fails, you will have another message. For example, in case the number is -1003 indicates that your license key is invalid. If the error is -1003 enter your license key into the form at here.

If it is another error, try sending users Muzchap or JMordetsky a personal message via SI Games official forums.

If you are having other problems with Football Manager 2009, see how to:
- Fix Failed to set up graphics system message
- Fix Application Error problem
- Fix other Football Manager 2009 errors