Ted Lasso

Ted Lasso is an American sports comedy series developed by Bill Lawrence, Jason Sudeikis, Joe Kelly, and Brendan Hunt, based on a character of the same name that Sudeikis first portrayed in a series of promos for NBC Sports' coverage of the Premier League. The series premiered with the first three episodes on Apple TV on August 14, 2020, and was renewed for a second season of 12 episodes five days after its premiere, which is due to premiere on July 23, 2021. The series follows Ted Lasso, a coach of college-level American football, who is unexpectedly recruited to coach an English Premier League team, AFC Richmond, despite having no experience in soccer coaching.

Plot
In 2019, Ted Lasso, an American football coach, led the Wichita State University Shockers to a Division II National Collegiate Athletic Association championship. Due to his success, but also to get revenge on her ex-husband, Rebecca Welton (Hannah Waddingham), the new owner of AFC Richmond following her divorce settlement, hires him to coach the association football team.

Why It Rocks

 * 1) The show covers a wide variety of topics and issues related to soccer, sports journalism and ethics in the field, team corruption (which can be applied to business corruption in general), homesickness/long-distance relationships, and the cultural differences between the U.K. and U.S., with likable characters and believable arcs throughout.
 * 2) Iconic moments, like Ted comparing all the teams in the Premier League to NFL teams, with Richmond being compared to the Jets.
 * 3) Great acting, especially from Jason Sudeikis, Nick Mohammed, and Hannah Waddingham.
 * 4) Amazingly written characters who elevate the script with their actors' performances.
 * 5) Ted is the ideal football manager. He has a genuine passion for sports due to their ability to connect people and cares more about the experiences and relationships than wins or any material things. He also has an element of tragedy to his character, when he revealed to Dr. Sharon Fieldstone that his dad committed suicide when he was 16.
 * 6) Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt), Ted's best friend and assistant coach, seems unsophisticated and is a man of few words, but is still genuinely passionate about the team the way Ted is.
 * 7) Rebecca seems cold and "bitchy" at first, as she initially wants to ruin the team as it was the only thing her ex-husband loved, but slowly becomes "nicer" and starts caring about others due to Ted's coaching, even going as far as comforting him when his wife asks for a divorce in the season finale.
 * 8) Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein), an aging, often angry player, has an interesting arc surrounding setting limits for yourself due to age and accepting that you aren't what you used to be when you're old.
 * 9) Nathan (Nick Mohammed), the ex-ball boy and current "assistant assistant" coach, has one funny line after another when he appears, and his arc is an example of how Ted always sees the good in people, as is Keeley (Juno Temple), the team publicist.
 * 10) A lot of action going on in the soccer scenes, with real players and managers having cameo appearances. Even entire teams, like Manchester City, appear!
 * 11) The show made Jason Sudeikis a household name aside from his time on SNL, and elevated the careers of Hannah Waddingham (who wasn't in much aside from Game of Thrones), Nick Mohammed (who now stars on Intelligence on NBC as well), and Juno Temple (who had previously only had small roles or starring roles in independent movies).
 * 12) The pep talks Ted gives to players are very touching and inspiring, as are the scenes where he videocalls his son.
 * 13) Wonderful editing, especially the short, snappy transitions and the sound mixing.

Bad Qualities

 * 1) Jamie (Phil Dunster), a young up-and-coming player, sticks out like a sore thumb among the main characters. He's arrogant, unlikable, and has few redeeming qualities, even abusing and cheating on Keeley (which rightfully causes her to leave him).  However, he does actually get better in season 2 and becomes more likeable and acts less like a jerk, plus based on season 2 and seeing his dad, it is evident that he got some of his traits from him.
 * 2) Some jokes can be seen as offensive or mean-spirited, particularly the "voodoo" joke surrounding Sam (Toheeb Jimoh), a Black player, in the episode where Ted finds a "ghost" in the locker room.

Reception
The show has received critical acclaim, with particular praise for its performances, writing, and uplifting tone and themes. The first season was named one of the best shows of 2020, while the second season was named one of the best shows of 2021. For the first season, review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported an approval rating of 91% based on 65 reviews, with an average rating of 7.94/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Warm and winsome, if not particularly hilarious, Ted Lasso fleshes out its promo premise with unrelenting optimism and a charming turn from Jason Sudeikis." Metacritic gave the first season a weighted average score of 76 out of 100 based on 21 reviews, indicating "favorable reviews." Almost the entire main cast (with the exceptions of Brett Goldstein and Phil Dunster) were nominated for Daytime Emmys for their performances, as were the directors and creators.

Trivia

 * 1) The show is based partly on the takeover of English soccer team Chester City F.C. by American football coach Terry Smith in 1999, who subsequently installed himself as first-team manager.
 * 2) Bill Lawrence, who created this show, also created Scrubs, and Zach Braff, the star of Scrubs, directed two episodes of this show.
 * 3) It is unknown which Premier League team AFC Richmond is replacing, because all the teams from the 2019-2020 season, where the show premiered, were shown competing against them.
 * 4) The first season of the show was nominated for 20 Primetime Emmy Awards, becoming the most nominated freshman comedy in Emmy Award history.