‘Ted Lasso’ Season 3 Recap: What To Remember Before Apple TV’s Fan-Favorite Series Officially Returns

Published Aug 3, 2026, 11:27 AM EDT Shawn Van Horn is a Senior Author for Collider. He's watched way too many slasher movies over the decades, which makes him an aficionado on all things Halloween and Friday the 13th. Don't ask him to choose between Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees because he can't do it. He grew up in the 90s, when Seinfeld, Everybody Loves Raymond, and TGIF were his life, and still watches them religiously to this day. Larry David is his spirit animal. His love for entertainment spreads to the written word as well. He has written two novels and is neck deep in the querying trenches. He is also a short story maker upper and poet with a dozen publishing credits to his name. He lives in small town Ohio, where he likes to watch professional wrestling and movies. When Ted Lasso first premiered on Apple TV in August 2020, it not only helped put the relatively new streamer on the map, but also delivered a refreshing comedy that was desperately needed during a dark year. For three seasons, Jason Sudeikis and company impressed viewers with a series that became a definitive part of pop culture and won numerous Emmys, including for Outstanding Comedy Series. This week, Ted Lasso is surprisingly returning for a fourth season, so it's time to look back at how Season 3 ended and where we left off with the main characters — especially because the show last wrapped up as if it were a series finale. Ted Lasso Leaves AFC Richmond in the Season 3 Finale When viewers first meet Ted Lasso, he's working as a college football coach in the United States. With his marriage crumbling, he takes a job across the pond coaching the AFC Richmond soccer team. The only issue is that he knows nothing about the sport, but he's actually been hired by the team's owner, Rebecca Welton (Hannah Waddingham), to fail on purpose. Defying the odds, Ted is able to bring out the best in his players and mold them into winners. By Season 3, Ted is no longer the man hiding behind a perpetual smile. For the first time, he allows himself to feel, whether it be the pain of his ex-wife moving on, or the anger long buried inside him. After a season of ups and downs on and off the field, AFC Richmond finishes in second place in the Premier League. Yet the team is a far cry from where they once were, and with his mission complete, Ted decides to leave the team so that he can fly back home and nurture his relationship with his son, Henry (Gus Turner). Viewers' heartbreak is offset by the season's final images of Ted, back in America, enthusiastically coaching Henry's soccer team. Rebecca and Keeley Pitch a Women's Team for AFC Richmond in 'Ted Lasso' Season 3 So, with Ted Lasso having left for America, how can there possibly be a Season 4 of the series? The show's official plot synopsis confirms that he's back in England — not to coach AFC Richmond again, but to lead the club's new women's team. The genesis of this idea is formed at the end of Season 3, between Rebecca and Keeley Jones (Juno Temple). In the beginning, these two women could not have been more different, but shared experiences with men who doubted them brought Rebecca and Keeley together, turning them into the best of friends. Speaking of Keeley, who's now a businesswoman with her own PR firm, she has a brief fling in Season 3 with a venture capitalist named Jack Danvers (Jodi Balfour), but previously dated Roy Kent (Brett Goldstein), a retired Richmond player who becomes an assistant coach. Could Season 4 be teasing a potential reconciliation between them? As for Rebecca, Ted's departure convinces her she's finally ready to sell AFC Richmond — and she ends up giving 49% of it to the fans. There's also romance in the air for her, as the Season 3 finale reveals that she's finally reunited and rekindled a relationship with Matthijs (Matteo van der Grijn), the Dutch airline pilot she met earlier in the season. Coach Beard Stays in England and Marries Jane in the 'Ted Lasso' Season 3 Finale Image via Apple TV So where does this leave AFC Richmond's men's team? After Ted leaves, Roy becomes the new head coach, taking his new position so seriously that he goes so far as to start seeing psychologist Dr. Sharon Fieldstone (Sarah Niles), who previously helped Ted navigate his own buried pain. Roy isn't alone in leading AFC Richmond with Nate Shelley (Nick Mohammed) by his side. When the team's original equipment manager felt taken for granted, he turned against the team and joined their rivals, West Ham. Now, having seen the error of his ways, he's been welcomed back to AFC Richmond as an assistant coach on Roy's staff. Surprisingly, the two are joined by Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt), Ted's longtime colleague and best friend, who doesn't return to America with him as viewers might have expected. His on-again, off-again relationship with Jane Payne (Phoebe Walsh) is solidified when the two get married at Stonehenge, and Beard decides to stay in England. At the end of Season 3 of Ted Lasso, everyone is where they're supposed to be — whether it be because they're going back to familiar stomping grounds, taking new risks, or letting go of the past and believing in themselves. Season 3 of Ted Lasso may have felt like a goodbye, but Season 4 shows, life goes on. How Ted reestablishes himself, and where every character goes next is something you'll have to tune in for to find out. Ted Lasso Season 4 premieres August 5 on Apple TV.