Spoiler alert: This article reveals major plot details from the “Ted Lasso” Season 4 finale, “The Departing Lass,” now streaming on Apple TV.
AFC Richmond is entering a new era after a finale packed with coaching changes, personal milestones and one decisive intervention from beyond the grave.
Ted Lasso (Jason Sudeikis) ends the season by turning over management of Richmond’s women’s team to Alice Chilton (Tanya Reynolds). Rather than reclaiming his former position with the men’s side, Ted steps down to become an assistant manager alongside Coach Beard (Brendan Hunt).
Hunt, who also serves as an executive producer and writer on the series, said Sudeikis wanted Ted to relinquish the top job from the beginning of the writers’ room. The move was foreshadowed in Episode 1 with a close-up of a nametag reading “Lasso assistant manager,” before the season ultimately placed him in that position.
The apparent possibility that Ted might ask Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham) for his old job was deliberately used as a final misdirection. Hunt made clear that the women’s team was never intended to be a temporary diversion, saying, “We’re quite fond of our women’s team, thank you very much!”
Ted chooses more time with Henry
Ted’s decision is closely tied to his son, Henry. Bringing Henry to London had not created as much time together as Ted expected, and Ted continued to miss his games. The Employee of the Year plaque associated with Ted’s record-setting father also forces him to consider the consequences of becoming too consumed by work.
Ted has been thinking about his father, who died by suicide when Ted was 16, and recognizes that he has still been absent too often for Henry. At the same time, he has watched Alice develop into someone ready to lead.
“He just wants to make sure he’s with Henry more,” Hunt said, adding that Ted is prepared to work in a supporting role and find out what he can do with the additional free time.
The switch is mirrored by a major development on the men’s side. Roy (Brett Goldstein) accepts an offer to manage Chelsea, just as he and Keeley (Juno Temple) are preparing to have a child. Roy turns to the Diamond Dogs for advice about becoming a father, prompting Nate (Nick Mohammad) to return to Nelson Road and join their reunion.
Rebecca also takes a significant step in her relationship, proposing marriage to her boyfriend Matthijs (Matteo van der Grijn).
Mae protects Rebecca’s control of Richmond
The team spends the finale mourning pub owner Mae, played by Annette Badland, following her death at the end of Episode 9. Yet Mae ultimately protects AFC Richmond through her last will and testament.
Zelda (Tracey Ullman) attempts to acquire a controlling interest in the club, but Mae leaves her team shares to Rebecca. The transfer keeps Rebecca’s ownership at 51% and prevents Zelda from taking control.
Hunt said the creative team considered what the series might look like under a new boss, but ultimately decided that Richmond remained Rebecca’s domain. Once the writers settled on losing Mae, their guiding question became how she could “save the team from the grave.”
Mae’s death also allowed the series to explore the loss of a character its ensemble knew and cared about. Hunt praised Badland for accepting the storyline after Sudeikis told her what was planned.
Season 5 remains uncertain
Although the finale leaves several stories open, Hunt stopped short of describing them as conventional cliffhangers. Among the lingering questions are how Ted and Beard will operate as peers, how Roy and Keeley will handle parenthood, what marriage means for Rebecca, how the pub will fare under the men now running it and whether the team will accept Alice as its leader.
There is no confirmation that a fifth season will provide those answers. Hunt said he is not privy to any potential discussions involving the decision-makers and that Sudeikis keeps his plans private.
“I think we’ve always basically hoped we were coming back for more than one, but if it ends up just being one, then OK, that’s fine,” Hunt said. “It did end nicely. We’ll just have to see.”
Should the show return, Hunt indicated that there are still familiar characters the team would like to revisit. He was surprised Season 4 did not include Sassy or Ellie Taylor, though he said everyone approached for a story-supported return agreed to participate.
The finale also resolves lighter season-long threads. Beard, after cycling through colored contacts, earrings and changing hairstyles during what Hunt described as a midlife crisis, finally gets a haircut. Richard Schiff’s appearance as a version of Beard in Jane’s play was an intentional nod after Hunt concluded from an Emmys encounter that Schiff watched and enjoyed the show.
Ted’s repeatedly malfunctioning chair gets its own payoff, too: Alice had been responsible all along. Hunt said Sudeikis began introducing the broken-chair gag around Episode 3 or 4 without initially explaining where it was heading.
Closing out the eventful chapter is a new rendition of the show’s opening theme performed by Brandi Carlile — another change accompanying Richmond’s newly rearranged future, whether or not viewers ultimately get to see it continue.