Lessons from Lasso — Love of a Sports Team is a Lifetime Obsession

Rupert Manion rudely interrupts the fundraising benefit and in his mid-event introduction to Coach Lasso, he claims the love of his team that resides in his heart…you know, the lifelong love that we often have for our sports teams and clubs? Which team (or sport) has your lifetime fan-dom or passion? In today’s “Lessons from Lasso” on the From the Touchline podcast, this one is aimed more at the passionate fan. We take a look at how the love and subsequent obsession may actually be a dangerous thing. What might Jesus say to us about the time, attention, energy, and money that we pour into our obsessions (sports or otherwise?). We get a simple lesson in the different kinds of loves that we typically associate with our sports teams and a caution — that the lifelong obsession might be a dangerous path to walk. Ted Lasso, the immensely popular streaming TV show in its second season on Apple TV+ features the antics and quirky, Coach ‘Ted Lasso.’ Lasso first appeared a number of years ago as a comedic character as NBC purchased the broadcast rights to the English Premier League. Played by Jason Sudeikis, Lasso (as a coach) brings change to the difficult football (soccer) team that he has traveled overseas to coach. In the ‘Lessons from Lasso’ series, I (Rev Brad) look at some of the different life learning points brought up in the show from a chaplain’s point of view. From the Touchline is a short-feature (usually 10-15 min) podcast with Rev Brad Kenney, Founder and Executive Director of Soccer Chaplains United and Volunteer Chaplain to the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. Rev Brad and occasional guests touch on various issues around the topics of faith, family, and football (soccer). Also, don’t forget that you can listen in our app, SoccrChapUtd, in the Apple and Google store.