'Ted Lasso' Included a Tribute to Late Soccer Journalist Grant Wahl
Apr. 5 2023, Published 11:13 a.m. ET
It goes without saying at this point that beyond the drama, comedy, and general antics, Ted Lasso is a soccer show at its core. The tale follows Jason Sudeikis's character, Ted Lasso, as he runs an English Premier League Team — despite the fact that he comes to the job with no soccer coaching experience whatsoever. Although the concept of the show pokes a little fun at the sport, they make sure to pay tribute to its most important facets nonetheless.
That proved true when the Apple TV Plus show paid tribute to the late soccer journalist Grant Wahl. Read on to learn more about that special moment within the show.
'Ted Lasso' mentions Grant Wahl during the show and its credits.
Grant died from an aortic aneurysm while covering the 2022 men’s World Cup in Qatar.
During the April 5, 2023, episode of Ted Lasso, Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt) is seen toting a copy of Grant Wahl’s book The Beckham Experiment.
Brendan told The Hollywood Reporter that Grant was a fan of Ted Lasso and even helped create storylines for its characters, specifically that of Trent Crimm (James Lance), who viewers follow as he writes a book about AFC Richmond.
The actor explained: “When we knew we were going to have the storyline of Trent embedded with the team, we thought about reporters who’ve done that — John Feinstein came to mind, and Grant as well. Specifically, because Grant’s book is about football but also about the arrival of a superstar and the change of a culture with David Beckham, we went to him right away.”
During their time working together, Grant and Brendan became close friends.
"He came to my house, he met my family, I showed him around Richmond and we had a f---ing great day talking about football," Brendan explained.
Now, in the wake of Grant's death, Ted Lasso decided to not only include the scene referencing the late journalist's book, but also dedicated a specific moment to him within the show's credits with a title card.
"To carry on the train of salutes to his memory was something we felt obligated to do," Brendan said.
