Ted Lasso's penultimate episode jumps six weeks and leaves finale on a knife-edge
Ted Lasso is down to one episode, and the second-last hour leaves Richmond waiting on a league table, a pregnancy test and an empty bar stool.
Season 4, Episode 9, titled "Mae Rides the Bus" and released on 30 September 2026, is the penultimate episode, meaning the second-to-last in the season. All of its action takes place after a six-week jump forward in story time, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
Season 4 began its global rollout on Wednesday, 5 August 2026 with a single episode, with new episodes released every Wednesday after that, according to Apple. The series centres on American football coach Ted Lasso, who is hired by a wealthy divorcée to coach English football club AFC Richmond.
Episode 9 turns its attention to Richmond's women's side, the Lady Greyhounds. The team has slipped down the leaderboard and now sits on the cusp of missing a slot in the Super League, the top division they are chasing. Their hopes hinge on star shooter Gemma and whether her knee injury has healed enough for her to play.
The most personal cliffhanger belongs to Keeley. She passes out in the stands during the Lady Greyhounds match, a scare that stops play around her. The episode ends with her deciding if and how to tell Roy about a suspected pregnancy, a moment that implies Roy could become a father.
Then comes the quietest shock of the hour. Ted learns that Mae Green, owner of the Crown & Anchor pub where Richmond supporters gather, apparently died while cheering in the stands. The death is implied, not confirmed on screen. The show leaves room for the finale to clarify what happened.
Pressure is also building off the pitch. A member of owner Rebecca Welton's inner circle is working to betray her from inside the stadium, putting the team's future in the balance. The episode does not resolve that threat.
All of those threads point to one closing match. In the Season 4 finale, AFC Richmond play their final match of the season.
For viewers catching up, that is a crowded run-in. A promotion race, a possible baby, a suspected loss and a boardroom fight all arrive at once, with one episode left to settle them.
