This policy explains what The Dugout Manager (the "app") handles and why. The app is published by Dugout Games Ltd ("we", "us"), a company registered in England and Wales.
You can contact us about anything in this policy at info@thedugoutai.com.
This policy covers the mobile app. Our website, thedugoutai.com, and our Discord community are separate and have their own terms.
The short version
- The Dugout Manager is a single-player football management game. There are no ads and we do not sell your data.
- Your game saves live on your device. If you sign in to Google Play Games, saves can also back up to your Google account.
- The app sends crash reports to Google (Firebase Crashlytics) so we can fix bugs.
- Match commentary is generated by an AI service from Google, using in-game match information.
- We do not run our own servers that store your personal data.
What we handle, and why
Your manager name and game saves. When you start a career you enter a manager name, and the app saves your career progress. This is stored on your device. If you are signed in to Google Play Games, your save (including your manager name) is also backed up to your Google account through Google's Saved Games feature, so you can restore it on another device. We use this only to run the game and to let you restore your progress.
Google Play Games sign-in. If you sign in to Google Play Games, Google provides the app with an identifier for your player profile so cloud saves work. Sign-in is optional. Google's handling of that information is covered by Google's privacy policy.
Purchases. The optional one-time unlock is bought through Google Play. Google processes your payment and tells the app whether the purchase succeeded. We do not receive your payment card or billing details. The app stores on your device a record that the game has been unlocked.
Crash reports. The app uses Firebase Crashlytics, a Google service, to collect crash reports and error information: technical details about the crash, your device model and operating system version, and general app state such as the current in-game week and save slot. Crash reports may also include an installation identifier generated by Firebase. We use these reports only to find and fix problems. Crash reporting is switched on by default.
Match commentary. During matches, the app sends match information (for example the fictional club and player names, score, game week and match events) to Google's generative AI service, accessed through Firebase, to produce commentary text. This information describes the game's fictional world. It is not designed to include your personal information, and we do not send your Google account details as part of these requests.
Community link. The app contains a link to our Discord server. Tapping it opens Discord outside the app. The app does not send Discord any information about you.
What we do not do
We do not show advertising or use advertising identifiers. We do not currently use analytics tools to track how you play. We do not ask for your location, contacts, camera, microphone or files. We do not sell or rent your information.
Who receives information
We use these service providers, who process information to provide their services:
- Google Play (billing and Play Games Services) — purchases, sign-in and cloud saves
- Firebase Crashlytics — crash and error reports
- Firebase AI / Google generative AI — match commentary generation
These services are run by Google, and information may be processed in countries outside the UK. Google applies its own safeguards for these transfers. See Google's privacy policy at policies.google.com/privacy.
Legal basis (UK GDPR)
Where the UK GDPR applies, we rely on: contract (delivering the game and any purchase you make), legitimate interests (crash reporting to keep the app working and secure), and consent (signing in to Google Play Games for cloud saves, which you can withdraw by signing out or removing the saved data).
How long we keep information
Game data on your device stays there until you delete the app or its data. Cloud saves stay in your Google account until you delete them through Google Play Games or your Google account settings. Crash reports are kept by Firebase in line with Google's retention practices, and we do not keep copies for longer than we need to fix the issue.
Your choices and rights
- Delete your local data: uninstall the app or clear its storage in Android settings.
- Delete your cloud save: delete the saved game in Google Play Games or manage it from your Google account.
- Ask us: email info@thedugoutai.com to ask what we hold about you, or to ask us to delete, correct or stop using your information. Because most data sits with Google, we may direct you to Google's own tools for those items. We will reply within one month.
- Complain: if you are in the UK and unhappy with how we handle your information, you can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office at ico.org.uk.
Children
The Dugout Manager is not designed for or marketed to children, and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. If you believe a child has given us information, contact us and we will help remove it.
Changes to this policy
If we change how the app handles information, we will update this page and the date at the top. If a change is significant, we will also tell you in the app or on our website.