Ted Lasso, an entire show that was originally based on a commercial, was a series that no one expected to be of any quality. A one-joke idea (a fish out of water American is completely out of his depth in English sports) on a new streaming platform that no one had heard of (eating a real apple is less of a mouthful than “Apple TV+”) had on one or more otherwise his strategy is good, and becomes a huge hit with a first season to remember.
Packed with a brave cast, fantastic writing and the element of surprise, Ted Lasso was something so welcome at a time of so much fear with people hiding in their homes during COVID. Arriving at the perfect moment off the pitch, Ted and the show was about kindness and hope in a globally horrific time of fear. Now that the Emmy-winning second season is done, it’s enlightening to see how Ted LassoThe weight of pop culture has seeped into the real game world on which it relies.
If this proves anything, it’s that Ted Lasso‘s marketing has consistently been some of the best for promoting a show over the past few years.
To believe.
Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney take over Wrexham
In constant conversation, Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney would buy low Welsh team Wrexham and become the owners of the team. Celebrity ownership is not uncommon in the sporting world (Elton John was the former chairman of Watford, Mindy Kaling the proud owner of 1% of Swansea FC…), but for such an A-lister as Reynolds to be a part of something to be taken so differently (both culturally and geographically) remains an ongoing anomaly.
Changing light ridges, Ted Lasso would immediately use the Wrexham takeover as a joke, and Ryan Reynolds would post a fake Cease and Desist letter on his Twitter. Following in Ted’s footsteps and full circle, Reynolds and McElhenney are now featured in their own fly-on-the-wall documentary about the football club in Welcome to Wrexham.
West Ham’s Kurt Zouma abuses his pet
Now, here’s a very strange one. New wonder striker Dani Rojas misses a penalty and kills Richmond’s mascot, Earl Greyhound, with a stray football. That opening scene of Ted Lasso‘s second season aired on July 23, 2021, while on the real field West Ham defender Kurt Zouma seen how he severely mistreated his Bengal cat in a video in February 2022. Seeing the grotesque kicking, hitting and generally chasing the animal while the cameraman laughs (his brother – also a footballer) is just plain mean. Kurt Zouma paid £9,000 in court costs and was given 180 hours of community service and a five-year ban from keeping cats.
Following the new appointment of the team psychiatrist in Ted Lasso, Dani gets much-needed therapy to deal with what happened on the pitch and move forward. Are we saying that? Ted Lasso real football player and general piece of human waste influenced Kurt Zouma to attack that animal? No. But coincidence and the timeline are still eerily close.
Ted Lasso name-checks Jurgen Klopp, who responds in kind
In an interview after the game of a 2-0 win against Athletico Madrid, a journalist mentions that fellow managers around the world should imitate Liverpool’s Jurgen Klopp for his man-management skills, which the coach can only point out that the fictitious Ted Lasso had named him on the show in the same way earlier that week. Giddy, Klopp goes on to say how much better it is than a real Manager of the Month trophy.
Liverpool would go all the way to the final of that competition, where they lost 1-0 to Real Madrid.
Jesse Marsch & Leeds
While the US has an extremely successful setup with their Soccer League, Americans who play ‘soccer’ in the UK are a rarity. With the big exception of a talented handful like Tim Howard (who would also show up) in a commercial with Ted himself) and Clint Dempsey, it’s an even quieter place for yanks behind the scenes.
The Premier League has had exactly three American managers, most recently with the appointment of Jesse Marsch for Leeds this year. Just six games in, Leeds is currently 11th in the table. Marsch finished as the last team above relegation and has a lot to prove this season. Marsch took it in stride and would go straight into the resemblance of his reality and the TV show which also featured an American coach directing an English team in an interview with Sky Sports:
Ted gets tips from Jose
An unlucky Ted Lasso calls proven winner Jose Mourinho to pick up some tips. The commercial aired during the real-life Champions League final between Bayern Munich and PSG, with Ted commenting on the “cup of champions” on the spot.
Ironically, Mourinho was the manager of Spurs when these ads aired — the club Ted had originally introduced as all-day coaching when we first met him in the NBC promos, and long before the show even existed.
Jason Sudeikis supports Jadon, Marcus & Buyako
After England’s final loss to a penalty shoot-out in their heartbreaking Euro run, certain England fans stormed the stadium, rioted and then insulted certain players online for missing their chances. At an event in Hollywood to celebrate the series’ second season, actor Jason Sudeikis rocked a simple black sweater with a white font that read, “Jadon & Marcus & Bukayo” – the first names of three young players who missed their penalties and eventually mean messages were sent on the Internet.
Sudeikis said so he had chosen the jersey “just to support the three boys from the English team in the European Championship final. They’ve picked up a lot of unnecessary excuses from unnecessary people.” He continued, “I’m just calling on them to let them know that even here in the United States we have our own problems with what they’re going through and let them know they’re not alone. .”
Incredible marketing or genuine humanity? Frankly, both.
Ted Lasso and Richmond FC in FIFA 23
Move over Super Mario, there is another man with a mustache in video games! In such a bizarrely brilliant creative decision (and a great play in marketing from everyone involved), the latest FIFA game is to show Richmond’s fictional team, its manager, players and stadium as one playable entity.
In their statement EA wrote:“One of the great drivers of the game, you can select Ted Lasso as your playable manager in Career Mode, or you can manage AFC Richmond by exchanging them for the Premier League or any other playable league in Career Mode. “
It digresses at the sight of fictional Jamie Tart rushing past Arsenal’s ever inept defenders, driving Harry Maguire mad or Roy Kent attacking Lionel Messi with a bipedal challenge. You can watch the official promo video below and see how much Ted Lasso has been fused into real football.