Sega studio boss denies European closure rumours

Miles Jacobson, studio head of Football Manager developer Sports Interactive, has sunk rumours of major closures at Sega's European arm.

"Interweb rumours of SEGA Europe closing are false," he said on Twitter.

"It's gossip," he added, pointing to the lack of sources.

The rumours began over the weekend when NeoGaf picked up on and spread a Gamekyo report attributed to anonymous sources.

"On the eve of E3 2012, we are able to inform you, according to our credible sources, that Sega Europe will be finally closed in the coming months as well as all the local branches in Europe like Sega France. This is partly a consequence of the ineffectiveness of Sega's strategy over the past several years of developing games by western developers," the site claimed.

"At the same time, Sega will also announce, according to these sources, they will no longer develop AAA games on consoles, but will focus on digital games, notably for cell phones and tablets. Sega's last big title developed by Creative Assembly will be presented at E3 2012 in a few days. Furthermore, remember that Sega has announced they will not be at Gamescom 2012."

The rumour grew legs thanks to Sega's financial difficulties over the past year; the company has made lay-offs lay-offs and has become a target for doom-laden whispers. Notably, its European efforts - especially Football Manager and The Creative Assembly's Total War series, are among its most steadfast profitable operations.