Secret Mode, the independent UK publisher behind Escape the Backrooms, has announced a free content update for NUTMEG!, the nostalgic deckbuilding football manager developed by the Sumo Digital Academy alongside Sumo Sheffield. The update launches on June 11 and brings a League Cup, World Championship Matches, a new Gaffer Mode, and a delegated XI selection clipboard alongside bug fixes and quality-of-life improvements.
A Cup Worth Fighting For
The biggest addition is the League Cup, called the Egg Cup in-game. Fifty-six teams compete across seven knockout matches during the course of a season, and NUTMEG! leans hard into the drama that cup ties bring to English football. A new trailer shows off the mode in action. Losing cup matches will earn you taunts and mockery from opponents, while winning gives you bragging rights to lord over your rivals.
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Cup competitions have always bred the fiercest rivalries in English football, and adding that layer of stakes to NUTMEG!’s deckbuilding framework gives players one more reason to obsess over every card in their hand.
World Cup Fever Hits NUTMEG!
The update also introduces five World Championship Matches, timed to land the same day the 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off in North America. These matches mix historical recreations with fantasy “what if” scenarios. On the historical side, England vs. Argentina in 1986 is the marquee pick, a nod to one of the most notorious fixtures in World Cup history.
The fantasy side includes England vs. Argentina in 1990, a matchup that never actually happened at that tournament. England fell to West Germany on penalties in the semi-finals, while Argentina lost to the same West German side in the final. The two never crossed paths, and imagining what that clash could have looked like is the kind of alternate history scenario that soccer fans live for.
Gaffer Mode and Delegated XI
Beyond the cups and international matches, the update drops Gaffer Mode, which cranks up the difficulty across the board. Finances get tighter and broadcasted matches grow longer and harder, while new hurdles keep you from ever getting too settled in the dugout. For players who found the base game’s management side a bit too comfortable, this is the answer.
A delegated XI selection clipboard rounds out the update, letting you set a preferred lineup for matches you hand off to your assistant. It sounds like a minor feature on paper, but anyone who has watched their best striker sit on the bench during a delegated match knows how much this matters.
About NUTMEG!, We Said…
We previewed NUTMEG! ahead of its release and came away impressed. “All of these factors combine to create an incredibly satisfying loop of developing your team, unlocking new cards and players, and fighting up the table to lead your club to glory,” we wrote. “NUTMEG! will appeal to fans of soccer in general, as well as to those who love deckbuilders like Balatro or Slay the Spire. I can easily see myself spending countless hours scratching that retro soccer itch.”
The timing of this update lines up perfectly with the World Cup’s opening week. Soccer is about to take over the conversation in North America, and a free content drop that taps into that energy is a smart play from Secret Mode.
NUTMEG! is available now on PC via Steam.
