Keeping your club's wage budget in line with the 'Recommended Max Wage' ('RMW') figure is arguably one of the keys to long-term success in the game.

As a result, we often get people asking how this figure is calculated. The answer is that it's pretty complicated - there are lots of factors which go into the calculations. But in this article we'll try to explain it as simply as possible.

The basic idea is that the RMW should give you a rough idea of the kind of wages your club can afford if you want to break even. Spend more than this amount and you risk losing money.

So in order to get to that figure, we first of all try to work out how much money your club is likely to bring in throughout the season. Among other things, this is based on your estimated crowds, your ticket prices, and the prize money you might receive based on your predicted finishing position.

Sponsorship deals, and income from food, drink and merchandise are also taken into account. Top teams will also get more money from European competitions and increased TV exposure.

We then need to deduct the costs that your club will incur. The main things here include the cost of your training and youth facilities, and the running costs of your stadium. If these change during the season - for instance if you improve your facilities, or if you expand your stadium - this can reduce the amount available for wages.

Once all the income is added up, and the expenditure is deducted, we should then be able to give a rough figure of how much money is likely to be left over each week. This is the amount you could spend on wages without running into too much debt.

Inevitably this figure isn't always 100% accurate, since it's based on unpredictable events happening in the future. Your team might have a worse season than expected, meaning your crowds and prize money might end up being lower than predicted.

Of course the opposite might also be true - an unexpectedly successful season will bring in more crowds, more food/drink/merchandise sales, and higher prize money. Perhaps a good cup run will also boost your finances.

Also, the wage budget doesn't take into account money spent or received in transfer fees, or investment that your club receives. It's perfectly possible to have a profitable club that spends more wages than recommended - either by selling players to cover the shortfall, or by relying on investment.

Equally, keeping your wage bill in line might not help if you blow a load of money on transfer fees that you can't afford, or have to spend a fortune to sack a failing manager and appoint a new one.

Of course, if your club has got billions in the bank, you might not lose too much sleep if your wage bill is higher than recommended. But for new players starting out at the lower end of the game, hopefully the RMW figure (and this article) will give you some useful data to help you plan a strategy for success.