Ed Sheeran is back with another heartwarming love song, but this time it’s for a show’s soundtrack. Teased as early as July 15, 2022 during a live Sheeran performance at Johan Cruijff Arena, Amsterdam, NL, the song serves as a soundtrack to Ted Lasso‘s finale season and was released a day before the final episode dropped.
Football (soccer to some) is a beautiful game, but do you know what else is a beautiful game? Love! And who better to sing about love than the one behind the hit love songs “Perfect,” “Shape Of You,” “All of the Stars” and so much more. “Though we’ve not reached the end / We should take some time apart / Leave here with no regrets,” Sheeran sings in the opening verse, using the lyrics to sort of hint at the bittersweet end of the fan-favorite series. “Knowin’ we gave our all / Oh, I cannot pretend / That this won’t break our hearts / But we will meet again.”
On May 30, Sheeran shared the song’s recording process with fans, saying, “I recorded bits of it whilst on tour using crowds from the stadiums that I’ve been playing, and I’m super, super, super proud of it. I love the show. I’ve loved working on this song. I hope you enjoy it — just a bit of fun. Football!”
“A Beautiful Game” is written by Ed Sheeran, Foy Vance, and Max Martin, and produced by Max Martin and OZGO, with Max Martin singing background vocals with Sheeran.
Premiering in 2020, Ted Lasso quickly became a fan-favorite show as a result of its humorous lines and its feel-good storyline that borders on redemption, alongside quirky monologues mostly delivered by the titular character. Since the show premiered, Jason Sudeikis – who plays the main character Ted Lasso – has received 11 Emmy Awards for the role. The story revolves around an imaginary football team and the friendly spirit the coach has cultivated between the players and the rest of the team.
While there are hopes that the series will have a fourth season, Brett Goldstein (Roy Kent in the show) revealed that the third season was written as the show’s last. However, he did share what a fourth season might look like if the show expanded to include it. There are also speculations of a spinoff based on one of the footballers.
“A Beautiful Game” is coming just a few weeks after Sheeran released his latest album Subtract. “Eyes Closed,” “Boat” and “Curtains” were all singles from the album, and they were each accompanied by a music video.
