10 Ted Lasso Moments That Made Fans Cry

Summary

• Ted Lasso resonated with audiences by capturing the zeitgeist with its emotionally complex and heartfelt scenes that elicited both tears of sadness and tears of joy.
• The show tackled important themes such as panic attacks, grief, forgiveness, and overcoming adversity, showcasing the unseen depth and emotional complexity of the characters.
• Ted Lasso’s heartwarming moments, from surprising acts of kindness to reconciliations and displays of camaraderie, left fans feeling uplifted and inspired by the power of hope and optimism.

Ted Lasso is one of the most iconic and hilarious TV comedies of the 21st century so far, but what made it truly special was its ability to hit fans in the feels. Although a streaming series based on a sketch character from a commercial initially sounded like a terrible idea, Ted Lasso ended up being one of the biggest hit shows of the decade, and one of the most resonant stories of recent times. This was the show people needed, especially during the lockdowns. Ted Lasso managed to elicit just as many tears as laughs as it captured the zeitgeist with its fish-out-of-water story about the power of hope.

Ted Lasso struck a wide range of emotional chords in its short but sweet three-season run on Apple TV+. Some of its scenes were absolutely heartbreaking, producing tears of sadness, while others were refreshingly heartwarming, producing tears of joy and optimism. From the first time Ted admits he needs Dr. Sharon’s help to his beautifully cathartic “Thank you and f*** you” speech to his mom, Ted Lasso is full of emotionally complex scenes that had audiences in tears. The show’s three seasons have a handful of deeply touching scenes that made fans sad-cry (and plenty that made them happy-cry).

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10 Ted’s First Panic Attack

Season 1, Episode 7, “Make Rebecca Great Again”

From Puss in Boots: The Last Wish to HBO’s The Last of Us, a lot of recent movies and TV shows have set out to depict panic attacks realistically to properly represent the familiar foibles of anxiety on-screen. Ted Lasso was one of the first shows to address this as its title character started regularly suffering from panic attacks in the middle of season 1. When he gets his first panic attack, Ted is scared and confused and not really sure what’s happening until Rebecca finds him and calms him down. Everyone needs a friend like Rebecca.

9 Rebecca Tries To Convince Ted To Stay

Season 3, Episode 12, “So Long, Farewell”

In the season 3 finale, after Ted has decided it’s time to go back to America to be there for Henry, Rebecca joins him in the empty stands at the stadium and tries to convince him to stay. As Rebecca tears up, telling Ted how much he means to the club, it’s hard not to tear up with her. The audience wants Ted to stay just as much as Rebecca does. While Ted does end up leaving Richmond, the optimism and positivity that he inspired in the team stick around long after he’s gone.

8 Ted Opens Up About His Dad’s Death

Season 2, Episode 8, “Man City”

After witnessing the explosive results of Jamie’s complicated relationship with his father, Ted finally feels ready to open up about his own complicated feelings surrounding his own dad. He tells Dr. Sharon that his dad took his own life when he was a teenager and he still hasn’t figured out how to fully process it. This heartbreaking moment of honesty showed that there was so much unseen depth to Ted’s character, and so much emotional complexity underneath his friendly facade.

7 Rebecca’s “Never Gonna Give You Up” Eulogy

Season 2, Episode 10, “No Weddings And A Funeral”

Rebecca is conflicted when she attends the funeral of her adulterous father and struggles to reconcile his worst mistakes with the happy memories she has of him. When she goes up to deliver her eulogy, she can’t think of the right words, so she just starts singing her parents’ favorite song instead: Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up.” While the other funeralgoers are trepidatious about joining in, Ted starts singing along, and eventually, everyone gets involved. Rebecca has always looked out for Ted, and he returned the favor here.

6 Nate’s Tearful Apology

Season 3, Episode 12, “So Long, Farewell”

After spending the whole season building up to Nate’s return to Richmond, the team decides to forgive the former kitman and invite him back. But when he notices that the “BELIEVE” sign is missing from the locker room, Nate is reminded of his regrettable actions and feels that he needs to unburden himself with a full and frank apology. Ted insists that it’s okay, but Nate bursts into tears, tells Ted he’s sorry, and breaks down in his arms. It’s a beautifully acted scene that shows just how much remorse Nate has for what he did.

5 The Team Repairs Sam’s Restaurant

Season 3, Episode 7, “The Strings That Bind Us”

After Sam speaks out against a bigoted far-right politician, his restaurant is vandalized by the politician’s similarly bigoted supporters. Sam is understandably infuriated and ready to give up on his faith in humanity. But when he returns to the restaurant later that night, that faith is restored when he finds all his teammates selflessly working together to fix the place up as a surprise. This is a perfect example of a heartwarming Ted Lasso scene that makes fans happy-cry.

4 Rebecca Tells Ted The Truth

Season 1, Episode 9, “All Apologies”

In the penultimate episode of season 1, Keeley pressures Rebecca to finally tell Ted the truth about why she hired him. She goes to Ted’s office and confesses that she recruited a clueless American coach and hired a paparazzo in an attempt to sabotage her ex-husband’s team. Much to her surprise, Ted forgives her instantly, because divorce “makes folks do crazy things.” Ted’s openness and emotional maturity inspire Rebecca, and it changes the course of her character arc. This scene offered the clearest demonstration yet of “the Lasso way.”

3 Beard Forgives Nate

Season 3, Episode 11, “Mom City”

The majority of season 3 is built around what Nate could possibly do to make up for his mistakes and return to Richmond. But in the penultimate episode, “Mom City,” Ted tells Beard that everyone deserves a second chance – and Beard knows exactly what that means. He goes over to Nate’s apartment and tells him his backstory: he’s an ex-convict who stole Ted’s car, and only became an assistant coach when Ted got him out of trouble with the cops and offered him a job. In one of the show’s most touching scenes, Beard pays forward that generosity by forgiving Nate and offering him a job.

2 The Team Reassembles The “BELIEVE” Sign

Season 3, Episode 12, “So Long, Farewell”

In the season 3 finale, ahead of the big match, all the Richmond players reveal that they’ve each kept a piece of the shredded “BELIEVE” sign. They all put down their pieces in the middle of the room and reassemble the sign to remind themselves of the team’s ethos before going out on the pitch. There’s a really heartwarming moment in which Ted and Nate catch each other’s eye across the room and exchange a smile as they realize the club’s camaraderie is much bigger than their petty feud.

1 Roy Hugs Jamie

Season 2, Episode 8, “Man City”

The most tearjerking scene in all of Ted Lasso is one that initially provokes tears of sadness, then takes a heartwarming turn that morphs the tears into happy tears. As Jamie is taunted and belittled by his dad in the locker room, he’s finally had enough and punches his dad in the face. Beard throws Jamie’s dad out of the room, and as Jamie is in a very vulnerable place, Roy – his former rival – walks over and gives Jamie a big hug. This scene beautifully set up Roy to become a big brother figure to Jamie in season 3.