TV SERIES · 2020–present · USA
Ted Lasso
- Created by
- Bill Lawrence, Jason Sudeikis, Joe Kelly
- Network
- Apple TV
- Seasons
- 4
- Episodes
- 44
- Studio
- Doozer, Warner Bros. Television, Universal Television
42 archived facts 7 topics 5 sources Last reviewed Nov 2026
Ted Lasso, an American football coach, moves to England when he's hired to manage a soccer team—despite having no experience. With cynical players and a doubtful town, will he get them to see the Ted Lasso Way?
42 Interesting Facts About Ted Lasso
Interesting Facts (15)
- #001
- #002
In real life, Cristo Fernández (Dani Rojas) played football for Tecos FC starting at age 15, but a knee injury ended his career and led him to pursue acting instead. Phil Dunster (Jamie Tartt) played rugby as a child, and tried out for London Irish RFC at 15, but was rejected, which made him realize he was too small to play professionally.
- #003
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- #005
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- #007
- #008
- #009
Actor Phil Dunster confirmed his character Jamie Tartt is inspired by a combination of football players including Jack Grealish, Jimmy Bullard and Mason Mount.
Ted Lasso (2020): Phil Dunster, in the officeImage: Wikimedia Commons · The White House, Public domain - #010
- #011
Brett Goldstein based his character Roy Kent on Oliver Reed's performance of Bill Sikes from the musical Oliver! He revealed this on his podcast, Films to be Buried With, when his guest was Moon Unit Zappa.
- #012
- #013
- #014
Contains a major spoiler — show
Jason Sudeikis said that when the show was picked up, his own situation paralleled Ted Lasso's. At the time, Sudeikis was going through a bad breakup with Olivia Wilde, just as Lasso was going through a divorce. Also like Lasso, Sudeikis went to England (where the show is filmed) in order to grieve and start moving on.
- #015
Contains a major spoiler — show
Each season starts and ends with a tight close-up shot of the character who changes the most during the season. * Season 1: Rebecca. Starts as antagonistic toward Ted and eager to see AFC Richmond destroyed, ends as an ally to Ted and in full support of the team. * Season 2: Nate. Starts as a meek and insecure man who constantly seeks validation from Ted, ends as a smug and overconfident man who has rejected Ted. * Season 3: Ted: Begins the season depressed and barely hanging on, with the first close-up of him staring into space, unshaven, unfocused, and ends the season happy and content, having let go of his UK ties as he is once again happy in Kansas.
Production Story (8)
- #016
Phil Dunster initially auditioned for the role of a flashy European striker named Dani Rojas, attempting what Dunster describes as "a terrible Spanish accent." When the creators eventually cast Cristo Fernández, retooling the character of Dani to fit Fernández's real-life background, Dunster was asked to audition again for a new version of the character named Jamie Tartt. Producers instructed him to use a regional British accent that sounded like a modern footballer. Dunster chose a "muscular" Manchester accent, drawing inspiration from his girlfriend's relatives and a "sassy" Mancunian friend, and won the role.
- #017
- #018
During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Jason Sudeikis, Brendan Hunt, and Joe Kelly, along with several of the team actors, took to playing FIFA together online. Before the show was even released, they'd created an AFC Richmond club and were playing their characters. Out of this experience, the writers discovered Billy Harris was like "an encyclopedia for Drake songs", and they wrote that skill into a scene in Season 2.
Ted Lasso (2020): Jason Sudeikis, in the officeImage: Wikimedia Commons · The White House, Public domain - #019
Brett Goldstein (Roy Kent) was initially hired as just a writer. He identified so strongly with the character of Roy that after writing was complete, he sent an audition tape to writer Bill Lawrence with a note stating, "If this tape is in any way bad and you feel at all embarrassed and awkward that I've asked you to watch this, pretend you never got this email. I will never ask about it. We never need to discuss it again." Hours later, he received a reply that he had won the role.
- #020
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Behind the Scenes (5)
- #024
In preparation for the role of Roy Kent, Brett Goldstein spent several months attempting to learn how to play football. When this proved unsuccessful, a combination of wire work and visual effects were used to achieve the effect.
Ted Lasso (2020): Brett Goldstein standing in front of a yellow curtainImage: Wikimedia Commons · The White House, Public domain - #025
According to Hannah Waddingham, the shortbread biscuits that Ted brings Rebecca every morning were "absolutely horrific". The prop department admitted they hadn't put much effort into making them taste delicious, as they hadn't realized Waddingham would eat them with so much enthusiasm onscreen. Waddingham jokingly referred to Rebecca's enjoyment of the cookies as "the greatest acting of my life". Sarah Niles (Dr. Sharon Fieldstone) also confessed to disliking the biscuits, describing them as "wretched" and "like cardboard".
Ted Lasso (2020): Hannah Waddingham, in the officeImage: Wikimedia Commons · The White House, Public domain - #026
- #027
Most of the scenes in town were filmed in Richmond Green, a space which is only 4.8 hectares but made to seem much, much bigger. The charity gala scene was filmed outside Richmond Green's theatre. Richmond Green is only a 6min drive to the Taskmaster House, a filming location for a light entertainment show that featured Nick Mohammed for one season.
- #028
Contains a major spoiler — show
Each season starts and ends with a tight close-up shot of the character who changes the most during the season. * Season 1: Rebecca. Starts as antagonistic toward Ted and eager to see AFC Richmond destroyed, ends as an ally to Ted and in full support of the team. * Season 2: Nate. Starts as a meek and insecure man who constantly seeks validation from Ted, ends as a smug and overconfident man who has rejected Ted. * Season 3: Ted: Begins the season depressed and barely hanging on, with the first close-up of him staring into space, unshaven, unfocused, and ends the season happy and content, having let go of his UK ties as he is once again happy in Kansas.
Characters & Cast (4)
- #029
- #030
The character of Roy Kent is based on Irish footballer Roy Keane. Keane played in the Premier League from 1992 to 2006, first for Nottingham Forest and then, more famously, Manchester United. Like Roy Kent, Keane served as team captain and was famous for his temper and aggression, both on and off the field. Coach Beard's description of Kent as a "box-to-box midfielder" was often used to describe Keane's style of play. Keane himself has joked about the comparison, insisting he is "a lot nicer" than his fictional counterpart.
- #031
- #032
Easter Eggs & References (8)
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- #036
There are multiple references to famous British singer and actor David Bowie, including the Diamond Dogs (referring to the 8th album of Bowie with similar title), and Coach Beard's Piggy Stardust outfit in the episode "Sunflowers" (referring to Bowie's stage alias Ziggy Stardust).
- #037
- #038
- #039
During the starting credits (with the only exception of the episode Beard After Hours (2021)) several graffiti can be read on the stadium chairs. Amongst them are: "GET ON YOUR KNEES REF" "TED LASSO" with a strangled emoji instead of the O, NATE THE GREAT with a sticker, BOBBY, RELEGATE REBECCA with a Ted caricature drawn underneath, ROY KENT WILL KILL YOUR GRAN!, WD4D, two image stickers reading THE BEARD and KENT, LASSO with a hanged man head instead of the O, GREYHOUND TILL I DIE with a drawn dog, REF GET OFF YOUR KNEES, BIGISH, IN KENT WE TRUST and many smaller others.
- #040
Rebecca first hears of Ted when he gains notoriety for winning a national college football championship in America, coaching Wichita State. While Richmond FC is a fictional football club, Wichita State is quite real, and was founded in 1895. They have a historically successful basketball program, but have not fielded a football team since 1986.
Deeper Meaning (1)
Life & Family (1)
- #042
In real life, Cristo Fernández (Dani Rojas) played football for Tecos FC starting at age 15, but a knee injury ended his career and led him to pursue acting instead. Phil Dunster (Jamie Tartt) played rugby as a child, and tried out for London Irish RFC at 15, but was rejected, which made him realize he was too small to play professionally.
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
- Wikipedia
- IMDb
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