The awesome story of how ‘Ted Lasso’ went from hilarious NBC ad to heartwarming Apple+ series

How did this happen? Let’s look back.

Yes, you can BELIEVE it: Ted Lasso, the Apple+ series that shocked the world and became a beloved hit in 2020 is coming back later this week with its Season 2 premiere.

So to celebrate, we’re doing a post a day until Friday about the Jason Sudeikis series that’s about more than a first-time soccer coach figuring out how to lead AFC Richmond. 

First up: I’m not sure if this happened to everyone when hearing about Ted Lasso. But my response when I heard multiple recommendations was, “Wait, that show they made out of the NBC commercials? It’s good???”

Apparently, I was judgmental, not curious.

So after watching Season 1, that question led me down a rabbit hole: how did one of the best shows of the year sprout out of what was basically an elaborate sketch that promoted soccer on NBC?

Here’s the story as told through various stories: