Your guide to Kansas City and Kansas references in 'Ted Lasso' 

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Warning: There are some minor spoilers about the plot, mostly dealing with the background of the lead character Ted Lasso and the generic plot of the show.

If you are looking for a show to watch this summer, there are plenty of reasons to select Ted Lasso.

The show offers a good mix of comedy, drama and "feel good" moments that leave you entertained.

If you are a big soccer fan, you’ll naturally gravitate to the soccer side of things.

It's critically acclaimed. In 2021, the show made history with 20 Emmy nominations.

But for Kansas Citians and Kansans alike, you’ll have another reason to watch: The numerous references to the city and state that stand out.

Here's a run-down of many of the local references you will recognize on the show during a first watch of it.

There are a few missing from this list, as including them would spoil important plot points.

Wichita State Football: While Wichita State University dropped football in 1986, the team makes an appearance in the show. Ted Lasso, played by Kansas City's own Jason Sudeikis, coaches there.

The university acknowledged the connection on Twitter:

Thank you for everything Coach! Good luck this season!

- Tex Winter: Fans of NBA basketball may recognize Winter as coaching legend Phil Jackson's lead assistant with the Chicago Bulls and later, the Los Angeles Lakers. Before coaching Michael Jordan, Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal and helping win nine NBA titles as an assistant coach, he was a coaching legend at Kansas State University. He served as the team's head coach from 1953-1968. He led Kansas State to two Final Fours and won eight league titles at the school, which is still the record for most won by a Kansas State coach.

- Amos Otis: Otis played 13 years with the franchise and he gets name-dropped by Lasso. He played with the Royals from 1970 to 1983, winning three Gold Gloves, making five All-Star games and finishing in the Top 10 of the MVP vote four times. He hit 193 home runs with the Royals and drove in 992 runs.

- The Denver Broncos, notably the 1997 and 1998 teams: One of the biggest rivals of the Kansas City Chiefs are mentioned in the show. In 1997, the Broncos won the Super Bowl and defeated the Kansas City Chiefs the playoffs.

- The Kansas City Current: In multiple scenes, Lasso is spotted wearing Kansas City Current T-Shirts, which did not go unnoticed by the team:

.@TedLasso: Confirmed KC Current guy #KCBABY pic.twitter.com/savCJhKH9G

- Joe Arthur Gate Stack: Lasso is seen wearing a T-shirt, which was designed to honor Kansas City's four most famous barbecue restaurants. The shirt was designed by Three KC.

- Arthur Bryant's Barbecue: There are several references to the Kansas City barbecue restaurant, but we’ll just group them here. You’ll see a bottle of sauce. You’ll see a computer restaurant honoring the joint. Since then, Arthur Bryant's has launched "Believe in BBQ" T-shirts as a play on the "Believe" message.

New banner photo.#BelieveInBBQ pic.twitter.com/7Em49bHYXy

- bbqs@uce: Even Lasso's WiFi password pays tribute to a staple of Kansas City cuisine.

- "Not in Kansas anymore": If you are from the State of Kansas, you’ll hear this statement at least once in your life. It's a tradition that annoys some Kansans, but it is what it is. The same is true in Ted Lasso.

- Wizard of Oz pinball machine: The most famous movie with a Kansas connection gets a tribute in the form of a pinball machine.

- Lasso, like Sudeikis, is from a city in Kansas. Sudeikis is from Overland Park, though Lasso's home city isn't exactly known.

- Price Chopper: The local grocery store chain, with locations in Kansas and Missouri, gets mentioned during the third season.

- The Sunflower: One of the episodes of the show is named "Sunflower," which is the state flower for the State of Kansas. In the episode, a portrait of sunflowers is included and the flower's history is discussed.

- Brookridge Elementary School: Also getting name-dropped is Brookridge Elementary, the Shawnee Mission School District school that Sudeikis attended in real life.

- Westboro Baptist Church: A Topeka-based church that generated negative national headlines for the state of Kansas is mocked in a line by Lasso.

- Kansas City Sines: The baseball cap honors Chris Sines, who is Sudeikis’ best friend.

Lasso's Kansas ties were honored on April 1, 2021 by Gov. Laura Kelly, when Kelly named him the Kansas Coach of the Year:

Sorry @CoachBillSelf, @CoachBrandonKU, @WSUKeithaAdams, & @Coach_lBrown - on this April 1st, I have issued a proclamation recognizing @TedLasso as Kansas Coach of The Year. pic.twitter.com/oLHCcybOP8