Ben Anthony Foster (born 3 April 1983) is an English former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
Foster began his professional career in 2001 with Stoke City, having joined from Racing Club Warwick. However, he never made an appearance for Stoke, and spent time on loan with Bristol City, Tiverton Town, Stafford Rangers, Kidderminster Harriers, and Wrexham. He switched permanently to Manchester United in July 2005, but again struggled to break into the first team, and spent two successive seasons on loan to Watford from August 2005 until the end of the 2006–07 season.
Having played just 23 times for Manchester United (although he also played in the League Cup-winning teams of 2009 and 2010), Foster switched to Birmingham City in May 2010. An ever-present in the league for Birmingham, he was also part of the Birmingham team that won the 2011 League Cup. Following Birmingham's relegation to the Championship at the end of the season, he was loaned to West Bromwich Albion, and moved there permanently in June 2012. He returned to Watford in July 2018. He announced his retirement from football in September 2022 before returning to Wrexham in March 2023. He again retired in August 2023 after helping Wrexham to the National League title.
Foster made his international debut for England in February 2007 against Spain. Although he announced his retirement from international football in May 2011, he returned in February 2013, and was selected in England's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. He also runs a YouTube channel, "The Cycling GK", and The Fozcast podcast.
Foster was born in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire. He started his football career as a youngster at Racing Club Warwick of the Southern League Division One West. He became their first-choice goalkeeper in December 2000, and was also training as an apprentice chef at Café Rouge in Leamington Spa.
In April 2001 Foster turned professional with Second Division club Stoke City after being spotted by scout Colin Dobson. He signed a one-year contract with an option for a further two years; the "five-figure" fee was undisclosed, and RC Warwick would benefit from the inclusion of a sell-on clause. During his time at Stoke, He had loan spells at Bristol City, Tiverton Town, Stafford Rangers, Kidderminster Harriers and Wrexham. He sustained a cruciate ligament injury in June 2003 while playing tennis with his brother, which sidelined him for a period of six months. After his recovery, He was awarded the number 14 shirt and received his maiden call up to the Potters' first team for a First Division match versus Wimbledon on 17 January 2004. He remained on the bench for the 1–0 victory and was an unused substitute on a further six occasions during the remainder of the 2003–04 season. He was called into the first team squad for four matches during the 2004–05 season.
While playing for Wrexham on loan from Stoke, Foster was spotted by Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson, who was watching Foster's teammate and his son, Darren, in the 2005 Football League Trophy final. United had been struggling for several years to replace former goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel, and Ferguson decided to move for the young Foster, making a bid of £1 million for the player. Stoke agreed a deal with United on 15 July 2005, and the transfer was completed on 19 July.
Not ready for first team action, Foster was sent on a season-long loan to Watford on 1 August 2005, with the expectation of a second loan the season after. Watford manager Aidy Boothroyd claimed that "he's better than current Manchester United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar" and claimed Foster would be "the best goalkeeper in the world". Manchester United manager Ferguson suggested that Foster would succeed Van der Sar as first-choice keeper at United and eventually replace Paul Robinson as "England's next goalkeeper". Foster helped Watford reach the Premier League by beating Leeds United 3–0 in the Championship play-off final.
He re-signed for Watford on a second season-long loan on 10 August 2006 after Manchester United secured the services of Poland international goalkeeper Tomasz Kuszczak on loan from West Bromwich Albion. Foster's performances during Watford's Premier League campaign earnt him the club's Player of the Season award. Aidy Boothroyd expressed his desire to keep Foster at Watford for a third season on a number of occasions during the 2006–07 season, but his hopes were dashed in January 2007 when Alex Ferguson announced his intention to bring Foster back to Old Trafford at the end of the season.
In June 2007, it was announced that Foster would undergo surgery on a cruciate ligament injury in his right knee, forcing him to miss the start of the 2007–08 season. He returned to light training towards the end of 2007, setting a February 2008 target for his return. He made a comeback in a reserve match against Middlesbrough on 6 March 2008, before making his debut for the Manchester United first team on 15 March 2008. With Edwin van der Sar injured and Tomasz Kuszczak suspended for a red card against Portsmouth in the FA Cup sixth round the previous Saturday, Alex Ferguson had to shelve plans to ship Foster out on loan again, and the young goalkeeper was started for the away match against Derby County. United won the match 1–0, with Foster making two crucial saves en route to keeping a clean sheet. Although he was impressed with Foster's performance in the match against Derby, Ferguson did not start him for the following match against Bolton Wanderers, opting for the returning Kuszczak.
After being selected as a substitute for Manchester United's opening match of the 2008–09 Champions League against Villarreal on 17 September 2008, Foster then played for the reserves against Blackburn Rovers the following day. During the match, he fell awkwardly and suffered a twisted ankle, putting him out of contention for six to eight weeks. Fortunately for Foster, his recovery time was quicker than was first estimated and he returned to reserve team action on 14 October 2008, playing the full 90 minutes in a 2–1 win over Oldham Athletic reserves. Foster then made his first Champions League appearance – his second for the Manchester United first team – on 5 November 2008, in a 1–1 away draw to Celtic.
Foster was originally selected in Manchester United's squad for the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup, but after suffering a broken finger in training the day before the squad was due to depart for Japan, he was replaced by Ben Amos. On 1 March 2009, Alex Ferguson named Foster in goal for the 2009 League Cup final at Wembley Stadium. After keeping a clean sheet in normal time, Foster then made a save from Tottenham's Jamie O'Hara in the consequent penalty shoot-out. This, combined with a miss from David Bentley, gave United a 4–1 win in the shootout and the 2009 League Cup title. After the match, Foster was given the Alan Hardaker Trophy for his man of the match performance.
It was revealed after the match that Foster had used an iPod to help with his preparations in the penalty shootout, prompting discussion about the use of technology in the match.
Foster was rewarded for his performance by being made United's second-choice goalkeeper for the remainder of the season, starting three more matches when Alex Ferguson chose to rest Edwin van der Sar ahead of important matches. However, he had been attempting to play with a ruptured ligament in his right thumb, which became aggravated, necessitating surgery which ruled him out of United's title run-in, the Champions League final against Barcelona and England's 2010 World Cup qualifiers in June. Following speculation that United were in the market for a new goalkeeper to replace the soon-to-retire Edwin van der Sar, Foster signed a new four-year contract with the club. Alex Ferguson commented that Manchester United "genuinely see him [Foster] as a successor to Edwin van der Sar".
With Van der Sar injured for the first two months of the 2009–10 season, Foster was given the opportunity to nail down the number one shirt in the 2009 FA Community Shield defeat to Chelsea, where his mistakes led to two Chelsea goals and made no saves in the penalty shootout. Foster continued to play in the League, starting with the opening day victory over Birmingham City. In wins against Arsenal and Manchester City, Foster received heavy criticism for errors that led to opposition goals. Manager Alex Ferguson stated that he believes in Foster's abilities and potential; however, eight days later, Foster was again criticised for a mistake which led to a Sunderland goal in a 2–2 draw, and left out of the England squad the next day with bruised ribs. However, following Robert Green's red card in the match against Ukraine and consequent suspension, Foster was given the all-clear by doctors and recalled to the England squad for the match against Belarus on 14 October. Foster played only twice more in 2009 for Manchester United after the Sunderland match: a League Cup win against Championship team Barnsley, and a Champions League tie versus Beşiktaş, with Manchester United's progress from the group already secured. He was displaced from the first team in Van der Sar's absence by Tomasz Kuszczak, and on occasion, reserve goalkeeper Ben Amos took Foster's place on the substitutes bench. Foster started his first match for three months against West Ham in February 2010, keeping a clean sheet in a 3–0 victory.