'Ted Lasso' Season 4 Proves There's Still Plenty Left of Apple TV's Beloved Sitcom To Believe In | Review

It’s been a little more than three years since everyone’s favorite cheery coach, Jason Sudeikis' Ted Lasso, walked off the pitch in his titular Apple TV comedy. As the series officially makes its comeback with a full 10-episode season, it thankfully never pretends the return is enough to win audiences over. Instead, it helps answer a question many fans have had since Season 4 was first announced — Did we really need more Ted Lasso?

That answer begins in the most Ted Lasso way imaginable, with Sudeikis' relentlessly positive and deeply empathetic lead stocking shelves in a Kansas grocery store, where he notices a teenager stealing and quietly makes himself the embarrassing punchline so the kid will think twice about doing it again. It’s a disarmingly small yet warm moment that only this series, led by showrunners Sudeikis, Brendan Hunt, Bill Lawrence and Joe Kelly, can pull off. But it’s also Ted Lasso’s unique way of acknowledging life has moved on for its lead just as much as for AFC Richmond.

Before Ted can justify returning to England and a part of the underdog clubhouse everyone grew to love, Apple TV's biggest sitcom has to prove there is still a story worth telling. Based on the first four episodes made available for review, it largely does so, even if there’s plenty more work to do to make the show feel more essential rather than simply comforting. Without erasing divisive choices made in Season 3, Ted Lasso Season 4 finds a fresh purpose in AFC Richmond’s women’s team, shifting its focus from teaching people to believe in themselves to asking what happens when belief runs headfirst into a game that hasn’t always given everyone the same opportunity.

‘Ted Lasso’ Season 4 Gives Its Biggest Underdogs a Different Kind of Fight

After leaving Richmond for Kansas, Ted has settled into a quieter life centered around co-parenting his son Henry (Grant Feely) with ex-wife Michelle (Andrea Anders). While the infectiously optimistic coach hasn’t lost his knack for helping others, it’s clear coaching remains a big part of who he is. When his former boss, Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham), unexpectedly arrives in Kansas alongside her newly appointed CMO, Keeley (Juno Temple), and director of football operations, Higgins (Jeremy Swift), with an offer to return to England, Ted initially turns it down. After all, his life and future belong in the States — or so he thinks. After some encouragement from those closest to him, Ted ultimately decides to head back to England with his family, beginning an entirely new chapter.

However, Ted isn’t returning to coach AFC Richmond’s Greyhounds, since Coach Kent (Brett Goldstein) and Beard (Hunt) are overseeing the men’s team. Instead, Rebecca wants Ted's help to turn the club’s struggling second-division women’s team into genuine competitors. Naturally, she pairs him with the overly analytical coach Alice Chilton (Tanya Reynolds), whose by-the-book approach to the Lady Greyhounds couldn’t be more different than Ted's.

As the Lady Greyhounds begin to take shape, familiar faces are woven into the very fabric of Richmond, as Keeley carries a huge weight on her shoulders in terms of elevating the public image of the women’s team. Her storyline is accompanied by new arrivals, with a different roster of players each dealing with their own ambitions. Season 4 expands the show's world while exploring unique realities surrounding women’s sports, like funding and facilities, media attention, and opportunities both on and off the pitch. The season's sharply paced four episodes steadily introduce new players and dynamics while reuniting viewers with the humor and warmth that first defined Ted Lasso. Because of this, the show's return feels familiar and intentionally focused before kicking things into full gear.

‘Ted Lasso’ Season 4’s Writing Gives the Series a Meaningful Reason to Return

One of the best, most admirable decisions that Ted Lasso's writing team makes with Season 4 is recognizing that bringing Ted back to AFC Richmond just isn’t enough. Instead of trying to recreate Season 1’s magic beat for beat, the series' lead coach is given a challenge that feels entirely different and one that, years ago, could have played to his anxieties. Even though Ted finds himself once again leading an underdog football team, the women of AFC Richmond aren’t searching for confidence or someone to get them onto the pitch. Their obstacles have little to do with talent, which forces Ted to realize that his players' real battle lies in proving their worth to everyone else.

That storytelling pivot is ultimately what makes the Lady Greyhounds an excellent addition to the series. The writing steadily peels back realities surrounding women in sports without turning it into an after-school special. The players celebrate something as simple as a proper locker room with showers and unlimited tampons because it’s never part of the equation for basic resources. As sponsors hesitate to invest and shareholders openly criticize Rebecca, even Ted’s introductory press conference is spun into a conversation about the men’s team. Just as interesting is the friction between Rebecca and Alice, who initially believes Rebecca’s decision to bring Ted aboard stems from an unconscious preference for a male coach. While some shows would paint that conflict in black and white, Ted Lasso lets two women disagree about what progress should look like without portraying either as unreasonable.

Whereas Ted Lasso's first three seasons dug deep into the power of “Believe,” Season 4’s strongest writing comes from recognizing that “belief” isn’t always enough. One of the earliest episodes sums up that idea perfectly when Keeley points out that “women don’t get to be friendly; we either succeed or we fail.” It’s a powerful, yet simple line that echoes throughout the writing, from players balancing motherhood and careers to the ones who are trying to recover from injuries while fighting for another chance.

Rather than showing these women as underdogs, Ted Lasso positions them as constantly expected to prove their worth in ways the men's team never had to. That shift in writing gives the series a reason to exist beyond basic nostalgia. Its central philosophy, paired with Ted’s optimism, empathy, and belief in people, remains the heart of Ted Lasso, except this new team is being tested by issues that kindness alone can’t solve. This evolution elevates the show's overall thoughtfulness rather than repeating a winning formula, proving there’s still meaningful ground for the Apple TV series to cover.

‘Ted Lasso’s Season 4 Ensemble Finds Strength in Both New and Familiar Faces

Ted Lasso already had one of TV’s best ensembles, and everyone is on their A-game here, with Sudeikis falling back into Ted’s familiar rhythms easily, balancing heartfelt sincerity with self-deprecating humor that never feels forced. Whether it’s his interactions with old friends or new players, the actor reminds audiences why Ted Lasso remains one of TV’s most beloved characters. Everyone around him also lights up the show in their own way, and thankfully, three years later, the cast's chemistry has not faded one bit.

Coach Beard's bizarre antics, particularly as one personal event causes him to spiral, continue to deliver some of the season’s biggest laughs, and Hunt never loses sight of his character even if we don’t see him too often. Meanwhile, Waddingham commands every scene she’s in. Her biggest challenge in Season 4 is balancing Rebecca’s trademark confidence with a newfound openness as the character navigates the foundations of a women’s team alongside her relationship with Matthijs (Matteo van der Grijn). Waddingham plays that layered tension well, letting Rebecca’s doubts surface in small, sometimes funny flashes without ever making her less capable.

Meanwhile, Goldstein’s presence as Roy might feel sparse throughout the first four episodes, but he remains one of Ted Lasso's funniest secret weapons. While there's constantly comedy to be mined from the character’s trademark gruffness, Roy's actually grown quite a bit, even if he is still figuring out how to navigate certain emotions. Temple once again proves Keeley is evolving with every season, bringing an even sharper confidence to the role this time around. Her quiet sensitivity is also played perfectly, revealing what Keeley struggles to say through the choices she makes. Swift’s Higgins continues to ground Ted Lasso with an understated humor that never begs for more attention, but gives viewers enough to want more of him in every scene.

As for the new cast of Richmond players, everyone is a smart fit with their own unique traits that make for some of the best moments of Season 4 so far. Not every new storyline lands with the same emotional weight just yet, and a few of the Lady Greyhounds still feel more defined by the issues they face than by who they are as individuals, but it’s Reynolds who is an early standout. Alice could have easily been written as Ted’s pessimistic opposite or a character stenciled loosely from Nate (Nick Mohammed). Instead, she builds her with conviction and vulnerability so that their clashing coaching styles feel more earned than manufactured.

While it’s nice to see Alice's dynamic with Ted turn into one of Season 4’s strongest additions, the first four episodes suggest the series’ greatest achievement won’t come from recapturing the magic of what came before. Instead, Ted Lasso successfully builds something new — and manages to move forward without losing what made it special.

Ted Lasso Season 4 premieres Wednesday, August 5 on Apple TV.