The Ted Lasso Character Who Gets The Best Ending Is Not Who You Think

Contains spoilers for "Ted Lasso" Season 3 finale, "So Long, Farewell"

Apart from Rupert Mannion (Anthony Head), pretty much everyone in "Ted Lasso" Season 3 finale gets a pretty nice ending for themselves. Ted (Jason Sudeikis) gets to be with his son (Gus Turner) again, and leaves AFC Richmond as a successful soccer coach who has managed to turn the middling team into a top one that will get to play for Champions League glory the next season. Rebecca (Hannah Waddingham) retains the team's majority ownership, acquires funds that she'll use to strengthen the club and establish a women's team, and bumps into the Dutchman from the Season 3 episode "Sunflowers" once again. Roy (Brett Goldstein), Keeley (Juno Temple), and Jamie (Phil Dunster) sort out their personal issues and continue their own career paths while remaining friends. Sam (Toheeb Jimoh) finally fulfills his dream of playing for the Nigerian national team, Colin (Billy Harris) comes out during the victory celebrations, Trent Crimm (James Lance) finally finishes his book ... you get the drill. AFC Richmond may only have reached the second place in Premier League this season, but by the time the episode is over, there are very few losers among the characters.

Still, even among these numerous stories of success, there's one particular ending that stands out. Coach Willis Beard (Brendan Hunt) ends up being the guy who gets to check pretty much every happiness box there exists, which combined with the depths of personal troubles he has dealt with in the past is more than enough to make his ending the most heartwarming one in the "Ted Lasso" Season 3 finale.

The Season 2 episode "Beard After Hours" dove deep into Coach Beard's personal issues, and the revelation of his tragic backstory in Season 3 episode "Mom City" gave plenty of context to how troubled his life was before Ted saved him from himself. However, his deep sense of gratitude toward Ted has meant that he more or less existed in his friend's shadow.  

In "So Long, Farewell," all of this changes. Beard has wrestled with his difficult relationship with Jane Payne (Phoebe Walsh) for much of the show's duration, but as he's waiting for the plane to leave, he finally realizes that he wants to remain in England out of love for her. He ends up doing just that, and the pair get married at Stonehenge, with a baby on the way. What's more, Beard also retains his place as a respected AFC Richmond coach — this time under Roy instead of Ted, allowing him to finally be his own man. Considering where he came from and how well his bases are covered at the end of the "Ted Lasso" Season 3 finale, it's pretty clear that Beard's ending is the show's best rags-to-riches story by a country mile.