Managers from the United States are at a disadvantage when it comes to finding jobs in Europe, but Emmy-winning show shouldn't be blamed
Hit streaming show Ted Lasso follows an unqualified American coach trying to succeed against the odds in England – and it has become a go-to talking point used to mock U.S.-born managers.
With Season 3 airing just a month after Leeds fired Jesse Marsch, the third-ever Premier League coach from the U.S., there is renewed debate about whether the show is harmful for future managerial candidates.
"I have to say I like it, because if I say I hate it I’m some elitist coach," Philadelphia Union coach Jim Curtin recently told. "I love the humanness of it. I watched the whole first season.
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"I give them credit for being at least close to capturing the feeling in the locker room. They get that there are people from different cultures, a**holes, nice guys, there are wives who are annoying who are problems. That’s all real. He comes off as loveable.
"Do I think it’s set back the American coach 20 years? Yes, I do. We worked so hard to get to Europe and then Jesse kind of breaks in and it’s like… what a curse to have that show break out at the same time he’s there. You can feel it with [Jesse]. He seems so angry at it, but to go back to my earlier point, if you show that they’ll chew you up and spit you out."
The sentiment there comes from an understandable place, but it's misguided. There are far more significant obstacles for American coaches than a three-season comedy, including UEFA rules that make it difficult to gain necessary licenses and the Premier League's avoidance of coaches from outside Europe, stemming in part from a stubborn love for mediocre but familiar candidates.
Allow GOAL to explain why there is no such thing as a Ted Lasso "curse"…
GettySo-called Ted Lasso effect, explained
The opening season of Ted Lasso begins with the owner of fictional Premier League club, AFC Richmond, hiring an American football coach in an effort to get back at her ex-husband. She wants to sink the team to relegation.
Lasso arrives in England knowing nothing about soccer. The press rips him to shreds and he struggles to gain respect in the dressing room.
Even though the story characterizes Lasso as a strong emotional leader, and eventually shows him inspiring the club to improved performances, his comical arrival to the country as an ignorant American plays into stereotypes about people in the U.S. not being able to properly understand the nuances of soccer.
Curtin, then, is far from the only one to believe Ted Lasso harms the perception of American coaches in Europe. Marsch himself called out a “stigma” created by the show when Leeds hired him.
“There’s probably a stigma. I’m not sure Ted Lasso helped [us],” Marsch told reporters at the time. “I haven’t watched the show…but I get it. People hate hearing the word soccer. I’ve used the word football since I was a professional player. We’re adapting to the culture in this country.
“All I can say is the only way I know how to do things is to go all in and if you do that you can be surprised. That sounds like Ted Lasso so I’ve heard!”
Curtin, Marsch and like-minded coaches are not wrong that people in England smirk when Americans are involved in soccer. But the negative, skeptical perception of their kind existed long before the show, which first aired in 2020.
Ted Lasso didn't create the stigma towards American coaches; it merely put a magnifying glass up to it.
Former USMNT player and current pundit Alexi Lalas properly downplayed the difference Ted Lasso makes for his compatriots wanting to cut it in England, saying on his podcast that “American soccer is going to be just fine” while adding that a show meant to make people laugh ultimately won’t move the needle.
“Make no mistake, Ted Lasso is built around a stereotype of American coaches. It consistently reinforces a stereotype of American coaches, and in that sense I think Jim Curtin is absolutely correct," the former USMNT star added. "But I think more often than not, it laughs with us, American soccer people, than at us.
"This is about entertainment. Ted Lasso has no responsibility to American soccer or American soccer coaches, it has a responsibility to entertain.”
AdvertisementGettyA broader Premier League dilemma
Many European coaches with sparkling track records have come to the Premier League and succeeded in modern times. Arsene Wenger, Jose Mourinho, Jurgen Klopp and Pep Guardiola are among those to have been embraced by fans as excellent tacticians.
Beyond continental borders, though? Marsch is the only person not from Europe to have served in a Premier League dugout full-time in 2022-23, and just two were present last season.
But of course, Brazil, Argentina and Ghana, who each have plenty of players in the league but no coaches, do not blame any Ted Lasso “curse” for their lack of dugout representation.
They are just as left out as the Americans – even without a show about them.
Getty ImagesLack of American up-and-comers
There are very few promising American managers venturing beyond MLS, partially because U.S. Soccer coaching licenses are not valid in Europe, and the long process of obtaining one requires approval from a UEFA nation.
"These are very selective spots," said Brian Clarhaut, who is now coaching in the USL after dipping his toes in Europe, to . "So that's a huge, huge disadvantage for American coaches. It's a problem."
Added HIFK Helsinki boss Mike Keeney: "They told me, 'You're an American guy with no UEFA badges, no coaching licenses. It's almost impossible for us to get you hired, let alone get you the work permit.'"
Beyond Keeney, Pellegrino Matarazzo (Hoffenheim) and David Wagner (Norwich City) are also currently in charge of European clubs. Historically, Bob Bradley and Gregg Berhalter have taken on prominent roles on the continent. But it's a small fraternity.
Perhaps the recent linkage of MLS clubs to European counterparts – such as NYCFC, New York Red Bulls and now even LAFC – will eventually lead to an easier process for fast-tracking licenses, as clubs use their powerful networks to push people up the ranks.
▶ Ted Lasso is available on Apple TV+. Start watching now
But there must also be ambition from MLS, USL and college soccer managers to leave their jobs for the complicated coaching food chain in Europe – a risk that requires life upheaval.
Sporting KC manager Peter Vermes, for example, recently rejected an opportunity to interview with U.S. Soccer for the vacant USMNT role so he could re-sign with his current club. The 56-year-old could have also gotten a foothold across the Atlantic with a small-sized organization.
There’s no reason to knock people such as Vermes for their career decisions. In fact, there is some credit due for being loyal to a project and wanting to see it through to its completion.
But if enough coaches stay in the U.S., it reduces the number of possible hires at European feeder clubs – and that makes it awfully challenging to get a crack at the ultimate prize of a Premier League position.
Getty ImagesWhat's next?
The USMNT's 2022 World Cup manager Gregg Berhalter – currently out of a job – gave an intelligent answer when pointedly asked whether U.S. coaches have done enough to show they can succeed in England.
“What I would say is, it is too small a sample size,” Berhalter told. “We just can’t make blanket statements about American coaches based on two coaches [Marsch and Wagner].
"That’s the way to look at it. Everyone has a unique quality. I could see if it had been 100 U.S. coaches and you had more data. If I was trying to figure how, say, players from Poland perform in England and only looked at two cases, I wouldn’t be doing my job very well. Everyone has a different upbringing and a different culture.”
Unfortunately, though, fans don't care about sample size. Sports are often an exercise in blowing individual data points out of proportion – particularly when biases are confirmed. It does sting a bit that Marsch couldn't last through the campaign at Leeds because of what might unfairly be extrapolated from his failure.
There is yet reason for optimism, though. A new wave of ex-USMNT players who competed for European clubs are starting to try their hands in management. Perhaps one of them – a Landon Donovan or a Steve Cherundolo – will eventually become a long-term Premier League head coach. Or perhaps Marsch will earn another chance.
As Ted Lasso says: “I believe in hope. I believe in 'Believe.'"