#‘Ted Lasso’ Finale: This Might Be All That We Get

[This story contains spoilers from “So Long, Farewell,” the third season — and possible series — finale of Ted Lasso.]

All season long, the people who make Ted Lasso have been somewhat coy about whether the end of their planned three-season arc would mark the end of the series. Jason Sudeikis, Bill Lawrence and others have said multiple times that this season would mark the end of what they set out to do, while never quite stating that it would definitively close out the series.

The last installment of season three, “So Long, Farewell,” played no such games. The episode felt every bit like a series finale, with callbacks to the past and flash-forwards to the futures of several key characters (imagined or not; more on that in a few paragraphs). The fact that Ted Lasso is Apple TV+’s biggest series by far to date might mean that the streamer and Warner Bros. TV, which produces the show, might find a way to make a sequel or spinoff featuring some (or most) of the characters from AFC Richmond. A couple of those flash-forward scenes could easily form the basis for a continuation — but Ted Lasso (Sudeikis) has left Richmond behind.

(Also notable: The show’s production designer, Paul Cripps, posted several Instagram photos Wednesday of the Ted Lasso sets being taken down, and Hannah Waddingham referred to “our final day as Richmond Greyhounds” on Twitter with a photo of her and several of her co-stars, including Sudeikis and Brendan Hunt, joining a Writers Guild picket in Los Angeles.)

“So Long, Farewell,” written by executive producers Hunt, Joe Kelly and Sudeikis — who developed the character a decade ago for an NBC Sports ad campaign — doesn’t play around (much) with the idea that Ted is following through on his heavily implied but not actually uttered promise to head back to Kansas from the previous episode. The first scene is a swerve, however, as Ted greets Rebecca (Waddingham) in her kitchen one morning, looking like it’s a morning after — then Beard (Hunt, in a thong) and Jane (Phoebe Walsh) show up, and Ted says thanks for letting them all crash at her place after a gas leak in their neighborhood.

But throughout, Ted is steadfast in his decision to leave Richmond and return to his son, Henry (Gus Turner), and ex-wife, Michelle (Andrea Anders), and be part of their lives again. Rebecca tries to talk him out of it, making appeals both personal and financial: She notes that if she sells 49 percent of the team, she’ll make a ton of money and in turn can make Ted one of the highest-paid coaches in the league.

And yes, Rebecca is thinking of selling the team: Ted’s imminent departure has her considering big moves of her own. Higgins (Jeremy Swift) notes that with Richmond having secured a spot in the Champions League by virtue of its top four Premier League finish, the club’s value has never been higher, and she could reap a huge profit and still keep control of the club by selling just under half of it. “How much would I get if I sold the entire club?” she asks. About £2 billion, he replies, causing her to spit out her tea.

After the team performs a rendition of The Sound of Music’s “So Long, Farewell” at Ted and Beard’s last practice, everyone seems primed to win the last match of the season. Until Beard plays them a compilation video of their time together, which has everyone blubbering and out of sorts to start the game. Richmond goes down 2-0 at halftime to West Ham, Nate’s (Nick Mohammed) former team, now headed by ex-Richmond manager George Cartrick (Bill Fellows).

Cue one last halftime speech from Ted: “I want you all to know what an absolute honor it’s been to be your coach. Getting to work with y’all the last three years has truly been one of the greatest experiences of my life. I’ve loved getting to know each and every one of you, learning about the men you were and getting a front row seat to see the men you’re becoming. And thank you for your patience — when I showed up here I didn’t know one thing about soccer. Now, I know at least one thing about football. I’m so gosh dang proud to be part of this team. I love you guys. I’m gonna miss y’all.”

That’s followed by the players each pulling out a piece of the ripped-up “Believe” sign and piecing it back together, firing themselves (and, no doubt, a bunch of viewers) up. “I know folks like to say there’s no place like home — and that’s true,” Ted tells them. “But there aren’t a lot of places like AFC Richmond, either.”

Richmond of course come out strong in the second half, hitting the post on several shots before Jamie (Phil Dunster) finally puts one in the net. A net-shearing blast on a penalty shot from Isaac (Kola Bokinni) ties the game … and this being a sports show, of course there are last-minute dramatics with a callback to one of Nate’s early play designs on a set piece that gives Richmond the winning goal — off of Sam’s (Toheeb Jimoh) foot — in the dying seconds.

Richmond don’t end up as Premier League champions — Manchester City also wins its last match and stays one point up — but it’s the most successful season in club history. Newspaper headlines reveal that Rebecca is indeed selling 49 percent of the club — to fans. She explains to Ted at the airport that she decided to stay near her Richmond family, just as Ted decided to return to his. The two say a heartfelt goodbye as he boards his flight home with Beard.

Or not, as Beard confesses he’s in love with Jane and can’t bear to leave her, but also fears abandoning his long-time friend. Ted gives his blessing. “I love you, Ted,” Beard says. “I love you too, Willis,” Ted replies.

After Beard fakes a ruptured appendix to get off the plane, Ted takes off and the flash-forwards begin: Leaving the airport, Rebecca runs into the handsome Dutchman (Matteo van der Grijn) from the Amsterdam episode and his young daughter (the end credits reveal his name is Matthijs). Ted leaves a note for Trent (James Lance) that he loves his book about the team, but he should change the title from The Lasso Way: “It’s not about me. It never was.” Rebecca names Roy (Brett Goldstein) the new manager, with Beard and Nate as his assistants, and they re-hang the Believe sign. Keeley (Juno Temple) and Barbara (Katy Wix) thrive at the renamed KBPR. Sam finally gets his spot on the Nigerian national team. Jamie reconciles with his dad. Nate, Jade (Edyta Budnik) and his family enjoy a night at A Taste of Athens. Trent’s book, now titled The Richmond Way, sells well. Keeley proposes a Richmond women’s team to Rebecca. The club gathers for a barbecue at Higgins’ home. Beard and Jane get married at Stonehenge, with the team and the couple from “Beard After Hours” in attendance …

And then Ted wakes up at the end of his flight, calling into question whether the montage was real or part of a dream (the weirder parts of the wedding certainly play that way). If some or all of those scenes are real, though, the continuation of the Lasso-verse could easily be contained in manager Roy or the founding of the women’s squad — should Apple, Warner Bros. and all those involved come to an agreement (after all industry labor actions are eventually settled).

Ted Lasso spread itself thin in places this season, particularly as it regards Keeley and Nate. The finale, however, hit enough right notes to leave viewers with the warm feelings that it’s trafficked in all along. The episode ends with Ted coaching Henry’s youth team and reminding him to “be a goldfish” after he misses an open shot on goal. Good people trying to be better people do win (or finish a valiant second) sometimes.

Odds and Ends

* Speaking of spread thin: The never-fully-developed love triangle between Keeley, Roy and Jamie comes to an end after the two guys get into a fistfight (offscreen) about her. They then descend on her place to ask her to choose one of them. She rightly boots them both out — “We’re fucking idiots,” Roy notes afterward. Keeley’s re-integration into the club’s orbit following her fallout with Jack is welcome, and it’s probably just as well that Roy and Jamie are free to continue their deepening friendship without competition over her.

* As hinted at in episode 11, Rupert (Anthony Head) was accused of an “inappropriate relationship” with his former assistant, which led Bex to file for divorce. His downfall is complete after he walks onto the pitch to berate, then shove, Hartrick during the match, leaving to shouts of “Wanker!” from the crowd and Sassy (Ellie Taylor).

* Frustrated by his inability to get out of his own way with Keeley, Roy asks to join the Diamond Dogs, then wonders why he seems incapable of change. “If we keep asking for help, and taking it when we need it,” Higgins tells him, “then we can be on the road to better.” He takes it to heart, seemingly, as the last shot of him is sitting down with Dr. Sharon (Sarah Niles), now a full-time member of the Richmond staff.

* There were previous hints, particularly in “We’ll Never Have Paris,” that Dr. Jacob (Mike O’Gorman) was kind of a tool, and that Michelle was beginning to see that. His utter dismissiveness of Ted’s last match at Richmond (and football in general) gave the final verdict on that (if a little bit heavy-handedly): He is.