3 days ago
Ted Lasso’s Women’s Team Draws Criticism for Repeating Chak De!
The article compares a new Ted Lasso story with the older film Chak De!
India.
Both stories show women’s sports teams that do not get along at first.
In both, the players become united after men treat them badly.
The writer thinks this idea feels repeated after nearly 20 years.
They believe women athletes can have many other kinds of stories.
These could include injuries, periods, pregnancy, childcare, harassment and worries about mental health.
The article says the earlier film gave its players more varied personalities.
It also says Ted Lasso’s season may still become more complicated as it continues.
The article argues that Ted Lasso’s new women’s football storyline echoes Chak De! India.
Both stories feature divided women’s teams that unite after confronting hostile men.
The writer says Ted Lasso misses richer issues affecting women athletes, including childcare, harassment and mental health.
Chak De! India’s 2007 portrayal of an Indian women’s hockey team is described as more distinctive and influential.
The article acknowledges that the season is still developing and hopes the Lady Greyhounds gain complexity.
- Who
- The article discusses Ted Lasso, Jason Sudeikis’s character, and the Lady Greyhounds women’s football team, comparing them with Shah Rukh Khan’s Kabir Khan and the Indian women’s hockey team in Chak De! India.
- What
- An opinion article criticizes Ted Lasso for repeating Chak De! India’s divided-team-to-unity storyline and relying on hostile men to bring women athletes together.
- Where
- The Ted Lasso storyline centers on Richmond’s Lady Greyhounds; the earlier film includes a team confrontation at a McDonald’s in Connaught Place, Delhi.
- When
- The comparison concerns Ted Lasso’s new season, identified in the article’s headline as arriving in 2026, and the 2007 film Chak De! India.
- Why
- The writer believes the newer series should explore more distinctive personal, physical and professional challenges faced by women athletes.
Critical view
More favorable view
Originality of the women’s-team conflict
Critical view
The writer says Ted Lasso repeats Chak De! India’s cliques-and-hostile-men formula roughly two decades later instead of giving its players distinctive egos, vulnerabilities and backstories.
More favorable view
The article does not accuse the makers of wrongdoing for taking inspiration from an Indian hit and suggests the season may add greater complexity as it unfolds.
How women’s sports should be portrayed
Critical view
The writer argues that stories about reproductive health, childcare, harassment, body image, mental health and financial insecurity would better reflect women athletes’ experiences.
More favorable view
The series may still have time to explore additional dimensions of the Lady Greyhounds because the criticism is based on only the third episode of the season.
Key facts
- Compared works
- Ted Lasso and the 2007 Bollywood film Chak De! India
- New team
- Richmond’s women’s football team, the Lady Greyhounds
- Earlier team
- An Indian women’s hockey team coached by Kabir Khan
- Shared storyline
- Internal divisions are overcome after the players confront men who taunt or disrespect them
- Criticized omission
- The article says the series underuses stories about period pain, pregnancy, childcare, harassment, mental health and financial insecurity
- Referenced research
- A 2024 study of Women’s Super League players reported cramps, fatigue, leakage anxiety and concerns about light-colored kits
- Article qualification
- The writer notes that the comparison is based on the third episode of a still-developing season
Sources
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