Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Media Tip Sheets
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • University Statements
  • Syracuse University Impact
  • |
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • ’Cuse Conversations Podcast
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Media Tip Sheets

Ted Lasso is back. Do Americans care about soccer, I mean, football?

Tuesday, March 14, 2023, By Ellen Mbuqe
Share
Sports

The third season of Ted Lasso has begun.  The incredibly popular Apple+ show about an American college football coach recruited to bring his coaching talents to an English soccer (I mean football) club.

Vlad Dima, a professor at Syracuse University. Dima has taught classes about soccer and popular culture for the course “Soccer and Africa,” offers some thoughts about what it will take for Americans to bring the same level of enthusiasm to soccer as they do to watching Ted Lasso.

  • “Given the series’ immense popularity, it is fair to wonder if Ted Lassohas changed the perception/reality that Americans do not know or care about soccer. It must be said that, ever since the US last hosted the World Cup in 1994, this has cyclically become a modish question. The short answer is…marginally so. Yes, the Premier League has respectable TV ratings in the US; yes, MLS has become bigger and more fun; yes, the US Women’s national team continues to dominate the world and we should all care about that much more; yes, the US men’s national team continues to show good promise for the future, as talented young players—Pulisic, Reyna, Adams, McKennie—will all be in their prime at the next World Cup, co-hosted by the US along with Canada and Mexico; but, no, this is still a sport that barely cracks the top five of main US sports. Ted Lasso cannot make Americans care more about soccer, because only consistent winning can do that in the US,” said Dima.
  • “The series became a hit by relying on the excessive American fascination with everything British. It is also funny, well-written, really well-acted, and, most importantly, almost obnoxiously optimistic. Is there a more typically American quality than obnoxious optimism? I believe in ‘Believe,’” says Ted in the first season finale. Optimism, belief, hope, and ridiculousness are all wrapped into this one motto that also represents a distillation of the American spirit—one that does not break when coming face to face with the (stereotypically) stern, stoic, and undemonstrative English philosophy of life,” said Dima.
  • “Ted, unabashedly, is who is he—he does not change. If anything, it feels like it is Ted who is meant to change everyone else. His unfailing ethic of care positively affects those around him, but he himself does not change. This means that in essence, he is still an American football coach. It is not soccer, then, that wins the hearts of the viewers, it is American exceptionalism, sugarcoated with a double dose of “believe.” And whenever this exceptionalism translates into the US men’s national team regularly winning on the world stage, it will be then and only then that soccer will gain in popularity,” said Dima.

For reporters looking to connect with Professor Dima, please contact Ellen James Mbuqu, executive director of media relations, ejmbuqe@syr.edu or 412-496-0551.

  • Author
  • Faculty Experts

Ellen Mbuqe

  • Vlad Dima

  • Recent
  • Syracuse Stage Announces Cast and Production Team of Musical ‘The Hello Girls’
    Friday, August 8, 2025, By Joanna Penalva
  • Expert Available for New Tariffs on India
    Friday, August 8, 2025, By Ellen Mbuqe
  • Syracuse Views Summer 2025
    Friday, August 8, 2025, By News Staff
  • Sport Management Professor Calls Historic First in MLB ‘Overdue’
    Thursday, August 7, 2025, By Keith Kobland
  • Scott Tainsky’s Research Focus Aligns Perfectly With New Falk College of Sport
    Thursday, August 7, 2025, By Matt Michael

More In Media Tip Sheets

Expert Available for New Tariffs on India

This week, the White House announced that it was doubling tariffs to 50% on imports from India, due to the country buying oil from Russia. Reporters looking for an expert to discuss how these tariffs will impact global trade and…

Sport Management Professor Calls Historic First in MLB ‘Overdue’

As Major League Baseball prepares for a historic moment this weekend with Jen Pawol becoming the first woman to umpire a major league game, Falk College of Sport Professor Mary Graham calls it “overdue,” and emphasizes the broader implications for…

Q&A: Reflecting on the 80th Anniversary of the Atomic Bombings, Lasting Impact

August marks 80 years since atomic bombs were dropped on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki—on Aug. 6 and 9, 1945—quickly bringing an end to World War II. At the time, the U.S. was calling for Japan’s unconditional surrender,…

Iran Escalation: Experts Available This Week

If you’re covering the latest developments with Iran and their impact on Israel, the U.S., China, Russia, global supply chains, and more, Syracuse University faculty experts are available for interviews this week. Below, you’ll find a list of experts along…

SCOTUS Win for Combat Veterans Backed by Syracuse Law Clinic

On Thursday, June 12, the United States Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision in Soto v. United States, marking a significant victory for U.S. combat veterans seeking disability compensation. The 9-0 opinion, authored by Justice Clarence Thomas, held that the…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • Facebook
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • Youtube
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2025 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.