Things That Will Definitely Happen In Ted Lasso Season 3 - Looper Staff Predicts
Football is life, and pretty soon, one beloved fictional team will be back on our screens. The long-awaited third season of "Ted Lasso" is finally returning on March 15 on AppleTV+, and fans are curious to see what their favorite mustachioed, Midwestern coach in a foreign land will tackle this time around. At the end of the second season, the titular Ted — played by Jason Sudeikis — is still reeling from having a huge anxious moment revealed to the entire country thanks to his former assistant coach turned rival Nate (Nick Mohammed), who's now coaching an enemy team.
So what's going to happen during the third season of "Ted Lasso?" Will retired superstar Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein) and PR maven Keeley Jones (Juno Temple) be able to keep their relationship afloat? Will Ted and Nate have a huge showdown? Will Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt) mutter something snarky while Ted is saying positive stuff? All that and more could happen, but here's what the Looper staff thinks is definitely coming.
Melissa Lemieux - Trent Crimm will make (or break) Ted's career
Trent Crimm (James Lance) (no longer of the Independent) is in an extremely interesting position as Season 2 of "Ted Lasso" opens. He starts the series as one of Ted's biggest skeptics, but has slowly changed his opinion about the kindhearted coach. By the time Season 2 comes to its conclusion, Trent's professionalism is superseded by his faith in Ted and his belief in the truth; he betrays his journalistic ethics, revealing the source for his devastating article about Ted's breakdown to the coach. This kind gesture does Trent no favors and results in him losing his position with the Independent.
That leaves Trent without a job leading into Season 3. What better way to keep him involved with the plot than to have him try to write a fresh article about Ted – maybe a profile telling the full truth? My prediction is that Trent will indeed publish something fresh about Ted which will be a reputation changer for them both in Season 3. It could be a full magazine profile that reveals a hidden truth; it might be a full-length book which reveals something new and shocking about goings on at AFC Richmond. Either way, I can imagine Trent being either the cause of — or solution to — Ted's Season 3 woes.
Nick Staniforth - Roy Kent becomes manager of Richmond AFC
Since the beginning, one of the highlights of this incredible sweetheart of a show has been watching Brett Goldstein's frozen ice slab Roy Kent melt with each season. Like so many other characters, the former Captain has been on a journey of ups and downs leaving us cheering for him both on and off the pitch. He won Keeley's (Juno Temple) heart, returned to Richmond as an Assistant Manager, and buried the hatchet with Jamie Tartt (Phil Dunster). However, concerning signs of his future presented themselves when the Season 2 finale ended with him and Keeley heading in very different directions and their relationship being put to the test. Could Season 3 mark the end of the greatest love Richmond has ever known? Or could the king of comebacks have an even greater reward waiting for him when we finally bid farewell to the Greyhounds and its grumpiest Assistant Manager?
As far as the recent trailer suggests, after a glimpse of Jamie stumbling in on Keeley and Roy, our favorite couple seems to be trying to make things work which is frankly great news. If that's the case, why not help the happy couple end things on a good note in a way "Ted Lasso" has such a knack to accomplish. Have them tie the knot, with Keeley happily becoming the boss b***h we know she can become, and Roy ends up in the job he's a perfect fit for. Manager of AFC Richmond.
If our other bets are right, Ted is heading home after what we hope will be a successful season for the team he's managed for three years. We can't think of anyone better to take over the job than the cement-gargling gaffer that has been with the team since before Ted even arrived. Will he put fear into any new player that comes their way? But by taking from Ted's teachings, Roy could become the dream manager for the Greyhounds that has every possibility of being. You just have to believe, obviously.
Pauli Poisuo - The show will lean on cameos and expy characters a bit too hard
Since it focuses on the other football, "Ted Lasso" is a fantastic show for the kind of creator who's inspired by real life. After all, what US viewer is going to recognize the more or (usually) less obscure soccer players and coaches several of the show's characters draw from?
At this point, fans are probably familiar with the most obvious character inspirations. Roy Kent is a slightly fuzzier version of real-life Manchester United midfield icon-slash-professional grumpmeister Roy Keane; Dani Rojas calls the Mexican legend Chicharito to mind; and Jason Sudeikis has admitted that Ted's partially based on Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp.
However, Season 2 stopped being subtle about the whole expy thing when it transformed meek kitman Nate Shelley into a cartoon carbon copy of legendary coach Jose Mourinho in full villain mode. The trailer for Season 3 shows that if anything, they're only going to further play up Nate's Mourinho thing. This will likely be very fun for everyone not called Nate Shelley (or, possibly, Jose Mourinho), but it also beggars the question: Is "Ted Lasso" about to jump the shark with the expy characters?
Having witnessed David Beckham in "King Arthur: Legend of the Sword," I strongly feel that using expy characters instead of letting real footballers act is nigh-invariably the right call. However, introducing Nate Mourinho in the mix is getting a bit too on the nose, isn't it? Is this just the beginning? Will a store brand Cristiano Ronaldo lookalike join AFC Richmond and indulge in a GOAT-off with a diminutive Argentine ace? Will Jamie Tartt drop his laundry list of flashy player influences and just go full Jack Grealish, since it looks like he's going to sport the same haircut? Oh man, will they just decide to go all in with the celebrity cameos Season 2 was so rife with, to the point of maybe even letting David Beckham act? Please don't let David Beckham act, "Ted Lasso."
Mike Bedard - I'll continue giving my friends excuses for why I haven't watched Ted Lasso yet
As someone who moved to Los Angeles to write comedy, I can't tell you how many times people have told me I absolutely have to watch "Ted Lasso." And to be honest, I don't really have a good explanation for why I haven't seen it yet. I've seen clips and trailers, and it looks like a good show. I got a new iPhone recently, so I get a free subscription to Apple TV+. I've watched "Mythic Quest." Does anyone want to talk about "Mythic Quest?" That's a good show too. Why isn't that getting nominated for a bunch of awards? I just haven't gotten around to watching "Ted Lasso" yet.
I've come up with ever excuse in the book to tell all of the "Ted Lasso" obsessives out there why I haven't seen it yet. "I've been backed up with work." "It's in my queue; I'll get to it at some point." "My dog barks every time she sees Jason Sudeikis' face, and it gets real annoying." It's just one of those shows that's fallen to the wayside for me despite the fact I'll rewatch "The Simpsons" over and over again, and that's time that could easily be spent watching something new.
I think part of the trepidation when it comes to watching something new is getting attached to something that could get canceled partway through, which is an unfortunate reality of streaming these days. But the upcoming Season 3 is supposed to be its last one, so it's telling a full story. Maybe once all of the episodes are out, I can finally convince my psyche to open up to enjoy something new, but for now, "Ted Lasso" remains in my "To Watch" pile next to "The Wire" and "The Americans."
Rick Stevenson - Higgins hulks out on Nate
Sure, Jamie Tartt might be the face of AFC Richmond on the pitch, and Roy, Ted, and Beard are the ones leading the locker room, but there's an unsung hero in the football club.
His name is Leslie Higgins.
Through the first two seasons of "Ted Lasso," Higgins gets some great moments of character development, building him into far more than the bumbling caricature he could have become. He's a perfect example of the layered, complex writing that makes the show so great. Higgins has a beautiful family dynamic and an admirable outlook on life, but he's no pushover either — which makes him the perfect person to teach Nate some manners.
We're all familiar with Nate's fall from grace last season, which saw him leak details of Ted's panic attacks to the public and then abandon the team to go work for Rupert Mannion's new club. Overall, a pretty rotten look. And yet, it's hard to imagine Ted being the one to really lay into him for his transgressions. The head coach is too forgiving — too understanding of other peoples' problems to get that angry at a former friend. And while Roy or Jamie could easily read Nate the riot act, it would be a lot more interesting coming from Higgins.
Good ol' Leslie rarely gets his dander raised, but Nate's betrayal might be enough to do it. If he were to fully hulk out on Nate — lay out all the terrible things he's done and why he should be ashamed of himself — it would be so much more impactful than a reprimand from one of the players.
Plus, I think Higgins just deserves an opportunity to be the heavy-hitter for once.
Kieran Fisher - Nate will get West Ham relegated, proving that art sometimes initiates life
If this really is the final season of "Ted Lasso," Nate (Nick Mohammed) is going to get his just desserts. Sure, it's obvious that he's going apologize to those he's wronged, but he doesn't deserve to be let off the hook that easily — and West Ham can go down with him.
Nate's heel turn broke my heart. He was the most lovable character in Season 1, but much like my high school P.E. teacher before him, he ruined it all by becoming a nasty tyrant who thinks he's the bee's knees. Nate became the bully he used to hate, and he doesn't command enough respect to give the footballers the hairdryer treatment for no reason. Nate will bring these sensibilities to his new managerial role and West Ham's performances will suffer, causing them to lose every game and go down swinging like Fall Out Boy with a packet of sugar.
Of course, West Ham getting relegated is actually a fitting storyline for a series about England's great game in 2023. As of this writing, West Ham is currently 16th in the Premier League, a mere two points clear of the relegation zone. It's only a matter of time until Everton leapfrogs them as the Toffees are showing huge improvements under new manager Sean Dyche. It's also possible that West Ham will survive the relegation fight, but my personal beef with a fictional West Ham manager has made me too bitter to acknowledge logic.
Ravel Morrison once claimed that playing for West Ham was his idea of hell. Nate deserves to have a similar experience on "Ted Lasso," as his antics have interfered with the show's wholesome, heavenly elements for far too long.