Marketing

Believe, belong and remember: One last lesson from Ted Lasso

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October 8, 2026

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I have just spent the last several days at our Fast Casual Executive Summit where I was able to reconnect with old friends, meet new ones and lean into what makes this industry so great: warmth, hospitality and connections.

Needless to say, I was excited to come home Wednesday and watch the last episode of this season's Ted Lasso. It's one of my favorite things.

After the episode, I was sharing insights with a co-worker and fellow fan. We dissected each episode Easter egg and questioned out loud whether there may be a Season 5. And I also silently wondered how I would tie in the final episode to my last blog post about the series and how the lessons in each episode tied into restaurants.

I worked through change is good and while not completely convinced that was my takeaway, I spent the next several hours staring at the ceiling and mentally working through what the bigger picture of the episode, and the season by default, might have really meant. And once on the right track, I spent the next 30 minutes typing notes into my phone.

If Ted Lasso taught me anything, it's that loyalty is about so much more than sticking around. It's about remembering who was there from the beginning and who continues to support us.

As I pondered the episode, I kept thinking about Mae's decision to give the pub to the three loyal fans who had spent countless hours there, cheering on their team through the wins, the losses and everything in between. They stayed true to her, the pub and in the end, they were the last three who held onto their shares of FC Richmond, a true testament to their love of the franchise.

Like life, there are successes, failures and multiple shades of gray. But I thought about the deeper meaning behind the gesture, I realized that Mae didn't just give them a pub. She gave them something to be proud of and something they had helped to build simply by showing up, day after day.

And that got me thinking about loyalty — not just to a football club, but to a brand, a community, our values and ourselves.

What if brands spent as much time recognizing and honoring their first 100 or 1,000 customers as they do chasing their next 10,000? What if we celebrated the people who believed in us before anyone else did?

That's the kind of loyalty that can't be bought with points or discounts. It's earned through relationships, recognition and a sense of belonging.

And it dawned on me that throughout Ted Lasso, we (as fans) saw loyalty take different forms. Rebecca's loyalty to her values and the person she wanted to become. Roy's loyalty to his dreams, even as those dreams evolved. And the fans' unwavering loyalty to their team and, perhaps more important, to each other.

As I think about the future of our publications and the communities we've built, I find myself coming back to that same idea.

Our readers are the reason we're here. And loyalty should always go both ways.

I want to hear from you. What concerns you? What keeps you up at night? What challenges are you facing? And what stories, insights and conversations would make a difference in your professional life?

Because our job isn't simply to tell you what's happening in the industry. It's to listen, connect, challenge and help build something worth being part of.

Loyalty isn't about holding on to what was. It's about honoring what brought us here while embracing the excitement of what's still to come. (Just as Rebecca realized in one of the final scenes of the show).

So, here's to the people who showed up at the beginning, the ones who are still here and those we haven't met yet.

The best chapters may still be ahead.

Believe.

(I also now need a new show to watch and blog about. And I'm open to suggestions!)