Ted Lasso Theory Turns A Minor Running Joke Into A Major Season 4 Twist

Published Sep 24, 2026, 7:45 AM EDT

Arielle Port started as a TV producer, developing content for Netflix (Firefly Lane, Brazen) and Hallmark (The Santa Stakeout, A Christmas Treasure) before transitioning into entertainment journalism. Her love of story went from interest to lifelong passion while at The University of Pennsylvania, where she fell in with a student-run web series, Classless TV, and it was a gateway drug. Arielle Port has been a Writer for Screen Rant since August 2024. She lives in Los Angeles with her boyfriend and more importantly, her cat, Boseman.

Ted Lasso is back for season 4 after three years, and it feels comfortingly familiar — maybe too familiar. Critics are enjoying being back at Richmond, but are questioning whether it was necessary for Apple to revive its biggest comedy, while many fans feel Ted Lasso season 4 took a while to get its footing but is increasingly finding its stride.

Ted returning to coach Richmond’s new women’s football team, the Lady Greyhounds, is a compelling enough reason to continue the show, but the titular optimist's brand of inspirational coaching isn’t landing the same with the women’s team.

One tiny detail reflects how Ted hasn’t found his fit in the team yet. In the new coach’s office, almost every time Ted sits down, his chair sinks a few inches. This could be just a funny, meaningless physical gag, like Ted’s incredible spit-take every time he is offered sparkling water, but a particular Reddit theory suggests there’s something much deeper.

Like the Iron Throne cutting those it deems unworthy in Game of Thrones, the head coach’s chair in Ted Lasso is subtly rejecting Ted because the chair is meant for someone else — specifically, assistant coach Alice Chilton. It’s foreshadowing that by the end of the season, Alice will take her rightful place as the head coach of the Lady Greyhounds.

Alice Chilton Has Had A More Positive Effect On The Team Than Ted Lasso

Image via MovieStillsDB

Ted Lasso is a beacon of positivity, but his usual approach has not quite clicked with the Lady Greyhounds. Meanwhile, Alice Chilton, despite having an attitude that is almost the anti-Ted, has quietly had a more meaningful effect on Richmond. That extends beyond the players.

In episode 7, Alice was the one who saved the “Believe” sign by adding “and win,” turning one of Ted’s most recognizable symbols into something that better reflected what the team needed. This week, she inspired Gemma to put law school on hold regardless of the outcome of her injury.

Alice is also having an impact on Rebecca. With just one comment, she prompted Rebecca to send Gemma a much more personal get-well gift basket. Alice’s words can help Rebecca with her blind spots, like earlier in the season, when Alice forced Rebecca to confront her internalized misogyny after she didn’t interview a single woman for the head coach position.

Ted Lasso Season 4 New Characters
Name	Description	Actor
Alice Chilton	Hard-to-crack assistant coach	Tanya Reynolds
Gemma Jay	Striker & law school student	Abbie Hern
Lizzie Davis	Center-back & single mother	Faye Marsay
Katie “Boots” Quinn	Daredevil goalkeeper who plays without gloves	Jude Mack
Niamh Harrigan	Defender, Siobhan’s twin	Aisling Sharkey
Siobhan Harrigan	Defender, Niamh’s twin	Rex Hayes

What makes this especially interesting is that Alice does not have the classic Ted Lasso innate optimism. She is more pragmatic and blunt, and she does not seem interested in turning every setback into an inspirational lesson. Yet she is accomplishing something Ted has struggled to do this season: getting through to the people around her and making Richmond a better place.

Alice may be the coach the Lady Greyhounds actually need because they already believe in themselves; what they need is someone who will push them to turn that belief into the success that makes everyone else believe in them, too. Ted can inspire them to believe, but Alice seems more capable of demanding that they prove it.

Ted Lasso Would Be Better As An Assistant Coach

Image via MovieStillsDB

It would feel right if Ted stepped down as head coach at the end of season 4 and handed the whistle over to Alice, who has increasingly shown that she deserves the job. A new Richmond team deserves a new coach. However, Ted cannot exactly leave Ted Lasso, and he might be a more interesting character if he became an assistant coach.

Ted brings the vibes, but he has never been the team’s technical mastermind. Even as head coach, he frequently defers major decisions to Coach Beard or Alice, or even the players. Moving into an assistant role would simply make that dynamic official.

Alice could handle the tactical side while Ted focuses on what he has always done best: keeping the team connected and supporting the players. It would also give Ted more freedom to spend time with Beard, Rebecca, Keeley, and Roy, allowing the show to preserve its original ensemble dynamic without forcing Ted back into the center of every storyline.

More importantly, Ted is on a journey of his own. He is finally putting out into the world that he is ready for a new relationship, suggesting that his next chapter should be about figuring out what he wants rather than endlessly throwing himself into coaching.

There is also something particularly satisfying about the idea of Alice taking the job. It was pointed that Rebecca never seriously considered interviewing a woman to coach the women’s team in the first place. Having Alice ultimately take over would correct that mistake while giving Ted Lasso season 4 an unassailable reason to have returned.

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  Ted Lasso

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  Rebecca Welton

Ted Lasso is an American football coach who moves to England, hired to manage a struggling soccer team despite having no experience. With cynical players and a doubtful town, Ted has to convince everyone he's fit for the job.