The "Ted Lasso Way" was a term widely associated with Ted Lasso's tenure at AFC Richmond, used to describe his style of coaching.
Rebecca's original meaning[]
It seemed to have been coined by Rebecca in her first press conference with Ted. In that moment, and especially as initially used by her, it was a cynical bit of marketing with which she intended to pass blame for AFC Richmond's failures on to Ted. Doing so would allow him to become the fall guy for Richmond's horrible performance, rather than herself.
Ted's understanding of the phrase[]
However, Ted didn't see this potential pitfall and instead saw the "Ted Lasso Way" as a continuation of his practises with the Wichita State Shockers in Richmond. At a high level, the "Lasso Way" meant valuing personal development over winning. It was about standing by your players when they most needed supports, such as when they failed. It meant, as Ted once told a reporter, caring more about one's players than anything that happened out on the pitch.
More than anything, the Lasso Way was built on belief, a notion that prompted him to post several signs with the word "believe" on them, around the Dogtrack and his own home.
It was also summed up in the tension between two famous phrases — "Do you believe in miracles?" and "It's the hope that kills you" — with his preference being for the former.
Beard's pushback[]
When Roy Kent eventually showed himself to be too old and slow to remain a starter, both Coach Beard and Nate lost faith in the Lasso Way as a reasonable bit of guidance for a professional team. Beard, in particular, railed against Lasso's insistence on standing by Roy — under the auspices of the Lasso Way — as "selfish". He noted that the Lasso Way was better suited to amateurs, where the goal was indeed personal development. But on a professional team, the need to actually win overruled Ted's natural inclinations.
A compromise[]
In the end, when Richmond faced relegation by Man City, the Lasso Way seemed to bend to accommodate a need for the practical alongside the idealistic. He cared very much about what happened on the pitch — that is, ensuring his team wasn't relegated — but also sought a number of creative ways to include his whole team in the process.
The Lasso Way's emphasis on inclusion very nearly succeeded. But even in defeat it compelled Ted to reach out to Jamie Tartt, the author of their defeat, to confirm a lesson Lasso had spent the season trying to teach.