The weekend blurred. He beat Arsenal 3-1 at St. James’ Park. His wife texted a photo of cocktails. He replied: “Busy.” She sent a thumbs-up emoji.

Leo Vazquez wasn't a gambler. He was a systems analyst. That’s why, when his wife left for her sister’s bachelorette weekend in the autumn of 2023, he didn’t head to a casino. He opened his dusty laptop, typed "football manager 2008 download pc" into a search bar, and clicked a link that felt like stepping into a time machine.

By Sunday night, he’d reached January. Newcastle sat 4th. The deadline day deal for a 19-year-old Sergio Agüero fell through because he forgot to save the game and his laptop overheated. He nearly threw the machine out the window. Instead, he blew into the fan vent like it was an old NES cartridge and rebooted.