In the gaming world Scotland is independent

Developers of cult computer game have included the scenario in latest release

The UK will be out of the EU by May 2017, with an independent Scotland remaining in the 28-nation bloc.

That is one of the Brexit scenarios being played out in cult computer game Football Manager, whose developers released a screenshot of a potential pitfall facing bedroom gaffers.

In a sign of how the confused constitutional picture is permeating all parts of modern life, the game has also sparked a debate on whether footballers from other EU member states will require work permits post-Brexit.

At a certain point in the simulation game – enjoyed by millions of players across the world – a scenario may emerge in which the player is told: “It has been announced that England, Wales, N Ireland and Gibraltar will be leaving the EU at the end of the season.

“Scotland have decided after a referendum to remain with the European Union and leave Great Britain. From next season players from the European Union will need to apply for work permits to play in England, Wales, N Ireland and Gibraltar.

“European Union players already playing in these nations will be given special status to allow them to be treated as non-foreign and will not require any work permit.”

It is one of a range of “Brexit scenarios” inserted into the latest version to be released next month.

Miles Jacobson, of maker Sports Interactive, said: “The fact this is going to happen in the next few years means that it really has to be in the game.”

His team has tweaked the chance of some scenarios happening over others.

He added: “Preparing for the Brexit aspect of the new game has taken a lot of research; a lot of reading, a lot of talking to politicians and people in football.

“When we were working on it, the idea of a hard Brexit had a lower chance of happening than is now the case – we changed that with the Tory conference.

“The first option for the game was to have just one scenario and that would be it, Brexit done, but it’s not possible to come out with one outcome and it won’t be until all the negotiations are done.

“As a result we’ve decided to go down another route, and have included every possible outcome in the game, using artificial intelligence and percentage chances to make every game different.”

The lack of planning for Brexit has been cruelly exposed in recent months. Nobody, it seems. had any kind of proposals in place to deal with the consequences of a Leave vote.

At least nobody but the developers of the wildly popular Fooball Manager game.

They have plans in place to deal with not only the EU exit but also the possibility of Scottish independence – only time will tell if it is all just a game or a sign of things to come.

Sports Interactive has had to do its research for the new edition.