Maybe Ted Lasso didn’t get the result he’d have liked in the UEFA European Championship, but he did get the city of Merriam’s attention on Sunday.
Before the Euro Cup’s final match between England and Italy, the official Twitter account of the fictional soccer coach reminisced a bit about his roots. And name-dropped Merriam in the process:
55 years ago my mom was grillin’ in the backyard of her duplex in Merriam, KS listening to Joni Mitchell’s Urge for Going on the radio drinkin’ a chilled lemon Fresca. And I wasn’t even a glimmer in her eye yet. We’ve both come a long way, England. #Believe
— Ted Lasso (@TedLasso) July 11, 2021
Lasso, of course, is the creation of Johnson County native Jason Sudeikis. The Apple TV+ show’s critically acclaimed first season about a down-and-out American football coach who gets transplanted to English club soccer helped Sudeikis earn a Golden Globe, among other international awards.
Merriam’s official account, quick to pick up Lasso’s pass on social media, responded in kind on Sunday:
Somethings don’t change, @TedLasso, but somethings do.
Come back and visit anytime! pic.twitter.com/AuagRuYRKN
— City of Merriam, Kan (@MerriamKS) July 11, 2021
‘Lasso’ began as a funny promo bit for NBC’s coverage of the English Premier League but as a full series has propelled Sudeikis to new levels of notoriety and accolades in his already accomplished comedic career.
And it’s not the first time he’s used his rising international platform to rep his roots.
When he took home the Screen Actors Guild Award for outstanding performance by a male actor in a comedy series earlier this year, he used part of his acceptance speech to recall growing up in the Kansas City area and thank his parents Dan and Kathy Sudeikis.
“I wanted to thank my mom for bringing me to plays and musicals in Kansas City, every touring company that came through, whether it was ‘Phantom of the Opera’ or ‘La Cage aux Folles,’” he said at the time. “I want to thank my dad for taking me to go see movies. He took me to go see ‘Beverly Hills Cop’ when I was 9 years old.”
As for Sunday’s results, we have to assume newly Anglophone Ted Lasso wasn’t happy as England fell to Italy in penalty kicks.
But he’s got a lot to look forward as he tries to lead AFC Richmond back to the Premier League, England’s top-flight soccer tier.
Season 2 of ‘Ted Lasso’ is set to premier on Apple TV+ on Friday, July 23.
Here’s the official trailer:
