England vs Uruguay: Why was Ben White booed during the international friendly at Wembley?

England defender Ben White had a sour experience at Wembley Stadium on Friday when fans booed him during an international friendly against Uruguay.

White, who was called up by Thomas Tuchel after Bayer Leverkusen’s Jarell Quansah withdrew from the squad, drew boos when he came on as a second-half substitute in the 1-1 draw at Wembley, before hearing more boos after scoring his side’s late opener.

Former Three Lions skipper and current midfielder Jordan Henderson vowed to support Ben White after the Arsenal defender was booed during Friday’s friendly against Uruguay.

History behind the boos

The 28-year-old capped a chaotic cameo when he was awarded an injury-time penalty by Uruguay captain Federico Valverde.

READ ALSO | Match report England-Uruguay

White made his first England appearance since leaving the 2022 World Cup squad due to ‘personal reasons’.

He then made himself unavailable for selection for the remainder of Gareth Southgate’s reign as Three Lions boss.

Current England manager Tuchel has given White a «second chance» but the right-back found fans were less forgiving when he was introduced as Fikayo Tomori’s replacement.

What Henderson said in support of White

Henderson knows what it feels like to feel the wrath of the Wembley crowd after he was booed following an ill-fated move to Saudi Arabia, which earned him criticism given his past support for the LGBTQ+ community.

«As teammates we are always ready to support. A lot of fans will support all the players,» the Brentford midfielder said.

“I’ve experienced it myself, but that’s part of being an English player.

“Some fans probably don’t even know why they are cheering, they listen to what is said in the media, and often what the media says is not true.

“Not many people know the ins and outs of what happened in Qatar and it is up to us to handle this internally.”

Henderson, who captained England against Uruguay while Harry Kane was rested, said White has been welcomed back into the squad after Tuchel told the defender to explain his self-imposed exile to them.

And with England hosting Japan in another friendly on Tuesday, former Liverpool star Henderson agreed it is up to the rest of the squad to help White deal with the abuse at Wembley.

“Ben has been good since he came back and we will support him as teammates,” said Henderson.

“A few of us have been there, it’s hard when it’s you, but you have to try not to take it too personally. The media can twist things in certain ways, which isn’t always the truth, and then fans can pick up on that and think it’s the truth.

“It’s very difficult when that happens, so it’s important for us to make sure he’s OK, and I’m sure he is.

«I was very happy that he took action and scored a goal, that’s the most important thing.»

Published on March 28, 2026