The hit Apple TV series Ted Lasso tells the story of the eponymous kindhearted American coach who signs on to rescue a fictional UK football team, despite a severe lack of knowledge of the game. He also doesn’t know that his employer, Rebecca Welton, secretly hired him to fail in order to spite her ex-husband. Despite this, Ted slowly wins her and the team over after their initial misgivings about his inexperience. His unusual coaching style and unending enthusiasm took time for the grumpy football team to adjust to, which led to some hilarious results, but in the end, they are grateful to have him. The series is a classic fish-out-of-water case with a lot of heart as he wins over British skeptics — and the viewer, by extension — making it the top show on Apple’s streaming service.
Ted Lasso isn’t just for sports fans as it merely uses the game to explore relatable themes like friendship, relationships, and being a part of a team. It can tug at the heartstrings at times, but in a good way. There is a lot to love about the show, but there are others like it, being both addictive and heartwarming. Life doesn’t revolve exclusively around the drama in one’s life. The shows featured on this list know this and are famous for inducing that warm-fuzzy feeling and making audiences feel like everything will be okay. Now that Ted Lasso has finished its third (and likely final) season, here are nine other shows like Ted Lasso.
Updated June 2023: If you enjoy Ted Lasso then you'll be happy to know this article has been updated by Noah Martin with additional content.
9 Big Shot
When Big Shot first premiered, it may have gone largely under the radar. This wasn't due to any fault of its own. It was a year with five Marvel series and two from the Star Wars franchise, so it would have been understandably difficult for a show about Uncle Jesse from Full House coaching a girls' basketball team to stand out. It's earned its spot on this list, though, and is confirmed for a second season.
The dramedy follows Marvyn Korn after losing his job as head coach at a top university and seeking redemption by leading a high school basketball team to victory. However, doing so is more of a tall order than he anticipated. To gain the girls' trust, he's forced to learn traits he's never had before: empathy and vulnerability. By learning to connect to the players and his teenage daughter, the stoic Korn will learn how to be a better man while also teaching his players to take themselves more seriously and find their footing on and off the court.
8 The Big Door Prize
The Big Door Prize follows the residents of Deerfield as their lives change all around them. One night a fortune-reading machine appears in the local grocery store. It turns out that this machine tells someone their potential. As more and more people within the small town start learning of their potential, large wafts of people decide to uproot and change their lives on a whim. The story primarily follows Dusty (Chris O'Dowd) as he reacts to the changes people are doing, and struggles to deal with his own potential he received.
The series received above-average reviews. It's not nearly as uplifting as Ted Lasso is, but The Big Door Prize certainly has its upbeat moments that can inspire audience members. It has also already been renewed for a second season.
7 Brockmire
Like Ted Lasso, Brockmire understands that sports are about people and that the players have lives on and off the field. In this case, said player is Brockmire himself, who isn't a player but a play-by-play commentator for baseball. Upon learning that his wife is sleeping with another man, he has an on-air public breakdown. It's both tragic, hysterical, and unbelievably honest.
Brockmire conveys a palpable sense of exhaustion as every day the characters have to try and rouse themselves into positivity and hopefulness. Although this sounds easy, plenty of people in the real world can attest to just how hard it is. Brockmire demonstrates this difficulty, and the hilarious ends that the show will go to in order to show the truth make it into one of the past decade's most essential comedies.
6 Glow
In the world of professional wrestling, it's best to have a wide assortment of personalities for the entertainment of fans. The Greyhounds of the hit TV series GLOW have a wide selection of different and quirky women, each with unique characters and interests inside and outside the ring. This array of diversity only makes their shared love for one another more meaningful and endearing. It also makes their victories more meaningful. When Sam Sylvia started the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling, the women who signed on to the promotion did so for different reasons, but they soon found that it bolstered their hearts just as much as their bank accounts.
The series is just as much about the women featured as it is about wrestling and covers a lot of relevant issues, such as racism, sexism, beauty standards, abuse, and so much more. It's a showcase of strong women in a meaningful and inspirational way that captured viewers' hearts for three seasons. Sadly, it was canceled early into COVID-19 before the final season's filming could begin. However, while nothing yet has been said about reviving the show for its big farewell, it's not a certainty that it won't happen. GLOW is a series that revolves around wrestling, after all, and in wrestling, you never say never.
5 The Good Place
Most of the shows on this list have good vibes and laughs in common. While The Good Place has plenty of these, it can also seem a little morbid, but that's probably because it takes place in an afterlife utopia called "The Good Place." Fair warning to those who give this one a shot, however, be prepared to ugly cry.
In a refreshing and modern look at the afterlife, Eleanor Shellstrop wakes in this haven meant for those who lived a righteous life. The only problem is that she didn't live her life so perfectly, so she deduces that she is in the Good Place by mistake. She's assigned a former professor of ethics and philosophy as her soulmate. He teaches her and the audience all about philosophical ideas, morality, and what it means to be a good person. This heaven-like haven is not all that it seems, though, as the architect, Michael, may not be the man he claims to be. The Good Place expertly blends themes of hope, inspiration, and knowledge to teach viewers what it is to be good.
4 Scrubs
As the series that made Ted Lasso creator Bill Lawrence famous, Scrubs is, to this day, one of the most sensational workplace comedies and heartstring-pulling series there ever was. Despite some episodes not having aged well, fans still love to revisit the day-to-day antics of JD and his fellow interns as they work to save lives and bring laughs at Sacred Heart Hospital. When JD isn't helping his best friend to nab his dream girl, trying to nab his own, or dodging insults from his mentor, he's learning what it really means to be a great doctor.
Zach Braff, who plays the quirky resident, narrated the first eight seasons of the series, and also worked heavily on Ted Lasso, having directed the first episode. It's safe to say that anyone who loves Ted Lasso will love Scrubs, with its unending enthusiasm, relatable drama, and laughs from beginning to end. It also made talking about health easier for a lot of people. How many shows can do that while also doing whacky skits to random musical numbers?
3 Modern Family
In a mockumentary-style format similar to The Office, Modern Family takes viewers into the day-to-day lives of the Pritchett family, three households connected through blood but with different lifestyles and circumstances that come together in a goofy and heartwarming tandem. Jay, the family patriarch, married Gloria, who is the same age as his adult daughter Claire, a fact she has trouble accepting at times. Jay, in turn, has to learn to accept his new son-in-law, Cameron, who is married to his gay son Mitchell, whose sexuality he also has trouble accepting. His daughter Claire is also married to Phil Dunphy, who is lovable yet goofy and often gets on Jay's nerves. Then there are Claire's children, Jay's new stepson, and Mitchell's adopted daughter. All these kids experience different aspects of childhood, adolescence, and teen life, which their parents often have a hard time understanding.
With all these unique and zany characters, there is much comedic potential over eleven seasons as the series follows the three households and all their drama, dynamics, and shenanigans. As much as it can be gut-busting hilarious, it can also be tear-jerking at times. It's a comedic look at the American Family that covers plenty of relevant topics for all ages, from acceptance, responsibility, growing pains, love, and much more that kept viewers hooked for over a decade.
2 Shrinking
Shrinking is a feel-good show with a similar vibe to Ted Lasso. The story follows Jimmy (Jason Segel), a struggling therapist dealing with the loss of his wife and the destruction of his bond with his daughter. One day, Jimmy gets fed up with how fake everyone seems to be in therapy. So, he decides to breach a barrier as a therapist and tell his clients exactly what he thinks. This leads to not only his patients, but Jimmy and everyone around him making huge changes to their lives.
Shrinking has completed it's first season and currently has ten episodes ready to watch. This series was created by Brett Goldstein who has famously played Roy Kent from Ted Lasso. He also helped executive produce and write Ted Lasso. It should be no surprise that this amazing series has similar uplifting energy to Ted Lasso.
1 Friday Night Lights
Thanks to streaming, this classic has a lasting legacy as sports and drama fans are rediscovering it. In a five-season run, Friday Night Lights follows the trials and tribulations of a Texas football team. Both this series and Ted Lasso are similar in themes. They both understand that their respective sports are about the players involved, following the lives of the coaches, athletes, and the surrounding community that puts their faith in the team. It's not confirmed whether Lights inspired Lasso, but it may be fair to say that it at least paved the way.
The story of coach Eric Taylor, his wife Tami, and the various individually different players make an immaculate examination of the nature of the American dream in a small Texas town, tackling issues like race, class, and teenage life during and after high school for different people. It neither shy's away from nor sugarcoats how serious the players' lives are to them, nor the possibilities for them after the game is over, making for a drama that can both lift you and break your heart within a single episode.