8 Soccer Movies and Shows That Work Even If You Hate Soccer

Key Takeaways

• Ted Lasso won 13 Emmys by focusing on mental health and reinvention, not soccer tactics
• Welcome to Wrexham combines celebrity ownership with small-town Welsh community stories
• Classic films like Bend It Like Beckham and Shaolin Soccer use soccer as backdrop for cultural identity stories

The 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off in North America in a few weeks. Your social feeds will overflow with highlight clips, tactical debates, and endless discourse about whether that was really a foul. If 90 minutes of midfield passing makes your eyes glaze over, fair enough.

But here's the thing: some of the best soccer-adjacent entertainment barely requires you to understand the sport. These eight movies and shows use the game as a backdrop for stories about reinvention, community, family, and occasionally absurd comedy. You don't need to know your jockeying from your side tackle to enjoy them.

Ted Lasso: The 13-Time Emmy Winner

Apple TV's flagship comedy is the obvious starting point. Jason Sudeikis plays Ted Lasso, an American football coach who gets hired to manage a fictional English Premier League team despite knowing nothing about soccer. The fish-out-of-water premise sets up the comedy, but the show quickly becomes something else entirely.

By the end of season one, Ted Lasso is really about perseverance, mental health, healing, and midlife reinvention. The supporting cast carries much of the weight. Hannah Waddington plays team owner Rebecca Welton with perfect blend of ice queen exterior and genuine warmth. Brett Goldstein's Roy Kent became a fan favorite for his gruff-but-tender retired player arc. Juno Temple rounds out the ensemble as model-turned-marketing executive Keeley Jones.

The show won 13 Emmys across its first three seasons. Apple recently announced a fourth season begins in August 2026.

Welcome to Wrexham: Hollywood Meets Welsh Football

In 2020, actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney bought Wrexham A.F.C., the third-oldest professional football club in the world. The FX docuseries follows what happens when two Hollywood celebrities take over a fifth-tier Welsh team.

The show works because it's barely about soccer. It's about a working-class Welsh town and what the club means to people who've supported it for generations. Reynolds and McElhenney appear throughout, but the real stars are longtime fans, local pub owners, and players trying to climb back up the football pyramid. The club has since earned two promotions, and the documentary captures each step.

Bend It Like Beckham: The Cultural Identity Classic

Gurinder Chadha's 2002 film launched Keira Knightley's career and remains one of the best sports movies of its era. Parminder Nagra plays Jess, a British-Indian teenager whose parents want her to learn to cook and find a nice husband. She wants to play soccer.

The soccer scenes are competent but not the point. The film explores generational immigrant experience, the gap between parental expectations and children's ambitions, and friendship across cultural lines. It holds up remarkably well two decades later.

Shaolin Soccer: Martial Arts Meets the Beautiful Game

Stephen Chow's 2001 Hong Kong comedy takes a different approach entirely. A former Shaolin monk recruits his five brothers to form a soccer team, using their kung fu skills to dominate the sport. Players kick balls so hard they catch fire. Goalkeepers use Iron Head technique to block shots with their skulls.

It's absurd, cartoonish, and genuinely funny. The film became the highest-grossing Hong Kong film at the time and helped establish Chow as an international star before Kung Fu Hustle. If you want soccer content that doesn't take itself remotely seriously, start here.

The Damned United: A Manager's Obsession

Michael Sheen stars as Brian Clough, one of English football's most controversial managers, in this 2009 drama. The film covers Clough's disastrous 44-day stint managing Leeds United in 1974, a team he publicly despised.

You don't need to know anything about 1970s English football to appreciate this as a character study. Sheen plays Clough as brilliant, petty, charismatic, and self-destructive in equal measure. It's a story about ego, rivalry, and the difference between confidence and arrogance.

Other Picks Worth Your Time

• Goal! (2005): A rags-to-riches story about a Mexican immigrant who gets a shot at the Premier League. Predictable but earnest.
• The English Game (2020): Julian Fellowes' Netflix miniseries about the origins of football in Victorian England. More class drama than sports action.
• Sunderland 'Til I Die (2018): Another Netflix docuseries about a struggling club and its devoted fans. Darker than Welcome to Wrexham but equally human.

Where to Watch

Ted Lasso streams exclusively on Apple TV+. Welcome to Wrexham is on FX and Hulu. Bend It Like Beckham and Shaolin Soccer are available to rent on most major platforms. The Damned United streams on various services depending on region. Sunderland 'Til I Die and The English Game are Netflix originals.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do I need to understand soccer to enjoy Ted Lasso?

No. The main character doesn't understand soccer either, and the show is really about mental health, relationships, and personal growth. Soccer is backdrop, not subject.

Is Welcome to Wrexham scripted or a documentary?

It's a documentary series following the real Wrexham A.F.C. after Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney purchased the club in 2020. The events and people are real.

When does Ted Lasso season 4 come out?

Apple has announced Ted Lasso season 4 begins in August 2026 on Apple TV+.

What's the best soccer movie for someone who hates sports films?

Bend It Like Beckham works as a family drama about cultural identity and generational conflict. The soccer scenes are minimal and the story stands on its own.

Are any of these shows appropriate for kids?

Ted Lasso is rated TV-MA for language but is otherwise family-friendly in tone. Bend It Like Beckham and Shaolin Soccer are both appropriate for older kids and teens.

Source: How-To Geek