Ed Sheeran wasn’t expecting to win an Emmy at the 2023 Primetime Emmy Creative Arts Awards.
Along with Max Martin and Foy Vance, Sheeran took home the award for outstanding original music and lyrics for “A Beautiful Game,” which they wrote for an episode of Ted Lasso. Night one of the 2023 Primetime Emmys took place Saturday night (Jan. 6).
“We won an Emmy last night. I was not expecting to win at all,” Sheeran, a first-time Emmy winner, wrote Sunday. “It was a real real surprise waking up to the news, I wish I had been there but I’m just about to kick off the Asia tour so had to be elsewhere sadly.”
Sheeran then described how the Emmy-winning song came to be: “I wrote a song for Ted Lasso with Max Martin and @foyvance called ‘A Beautiful Game’. We were all fans of the show and got asked to do a song for the finale, so 2 years ago this month we got in together and wrote a song about love and football, and how it is always about the journey rather than the destination. I recorded a crowd at one of my stadium shows for it singing the final chant to keep it in the footie wibes.”
“It was up against some fantastic artists and songs in its Emmy category for Best Original Music and Lyrics, hence not thinking we had a chance in hell of winning, but thank you so much for whoever voted for it, and to Max, Foy and all the Lasso crew. I really am honoured. The song is out everywhere on all platforms if you haven’t heard it yet. Love you all ! And happy new year, see ya on the road,” said Sheeran.
Winners in five of seven music categories were announced on night one of the awards, which took place at the Peacock Theater at L.A. Live in Los Angeles. Winners in the other two music categories are to be announced on night two on Sunday (Jan. 7). The main Primetime Emmy telecast will air on Monday, Jan. 15, at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT on FOX.
See Sheeran’s reaction post below.