Dean Bradley Henderson (born 12 March 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League club Crystal Palace, whom he captains, and the England national team.
Henderson joined Manchester United's youth system in 2011 from Carlisle United. Between 2015 and 2020, he was loaned out to a number of teams across divisions, before making his Premier League debut with Sheffield United in 2019. After returning to Manchester United's first team and making his debut in 2020, he spent two seasons making sporadic appearances as a back-up.
After a season on loan at Nottingham Forest, Henderson was signed permanently by Crystal Palace in 2023, where he won the FA Cup and Community Shield in 2025. He was appointed club captain in 2026, leading his side to win the UEFA Conference League the same year.
Henderson has represented England at under-16, under-17, under-20, under-21, and senior levels. He was a member of the England under-20 squad that won the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup, and the senior team that were runners-up at UEFA Euro 2020 and UEFA Euro 2024 and finished third at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Henderson joined the Manchester United academy aged 14, having spent six years at Carlisle United. He first joined the academy in August 2011.
After progressing through the academy, Henderson was among 10 players to join the academy squad for the 2013–14 season. He became a regular goalkeeper for the U18 team in the 2013–14 season.
In the 2014–15 season, Henderson continued to impress as a regular goalkeeper for the U18 team, as he made 25 appearances but sustained an injury towards the end of the season. Nevertheless, he was among nominees for the Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year award but lost out to Axel Tuanzebe. In August 2015, Henderson signed his first professional contract with the club.
2016: Loan to Stockport County
On 12 January 2016, he was loaned to National League North club Stockport County on an initial one-month loan. He made his Stockport County debut, where he played the whole game, in a 1–1 draw against Nuneaton Town on 16 January 2016.
On 22 February 2016, due to an injury crisis, Henderson was recalled from loan and had his first call-up to a senior Manchester United game, sitting on the bench during a 3–0 FA Cup victory away to Shrewsbury Town. Henderson then returned to Stockport County to complete his loan spell. His first game after signing for the club for the second time was a 2–0 loss against North Ferriby United on 26 March 2016. He went on to make nine appearances for Stockport County and kept three clean sheets.
2016–2017: Loan to Grimsby Town
On 31 August 2016, Henderson joined League Two club Grimsby Town on loan until the beginning of January 2017. However, he started his Grimsby Town career as second–choice goalkeeper behind James McKeown. Henderson made his debut on 26 December 2016, in a 2–0 victory over Accrington Stanley at Blundell Park. After making his debut, his performance was praised by Manager Marcus Bignot. On 31 December 2016, Henderson had his loan at Grimsby Town extended until the end of January 2017. On the same day, he kept another clean sheet, in a 0–0 draw against Blackpool.
It was then extended again on 25 January 2017, until the end of the 2016–17 season. However, Manchester United recalled Henderson from the loan spell on 3 February 2017, due to an injury to third-choice goalkeeper Joel Castro Pereira. By the time of his departure, Henderson made seven appearances and kept four clean sheets; he had become the first-choice goalkeeper.
2017–2018: Loan to Shrewsbury Town
On 10 July 2017, Henderson joined League One club Shrewsbury Town on loan for the 2017–18 season. Upon joining the club, Henderson was given a number 1 shirt ahead of the new season. Henderson made his Shrewsbury Town debut in the opening game of the season, where he kept a clean sheet in a 1–0 win over Northampton Town. He also kept another clean sheet in a follow–up match, in a 1–0 win over AFC Wimbledon. Henderson quickly established himself as the club's first choice goalkeeper and became the club's fan favourite. He has also helped the club win the number of matches to help them go to the top of the table. By September, Henderson reflected his time at the club so far, saying he enjoyed playing football there and playing Saturday/Tuesday is excellent for his development.
By December, there were rumours that his parent club might recall Henderson in January. Later that month, Henderson kept three clean sheets in three matches against Blackpool, Portsmouth and Wigan Athletic. However, Henderson served a three match suspension after being involved in an altercation with an opposition supporter during a 3–1 loss against Blackburn Rovers on 13 January 2018. Initially the club made a decision to appeal, the club changed their mind shortly after. After serving a three match ban, Henderson returned to the starting line-up on 13 February 2018, in a 2–1 win over Fleetwood Town. By the end of March, Henderson kept 13 clean sheets for the team.
On 8 April 2018, he played at Wembley Stadium in the 2018 EFL Trophy final against Lincoln City, which Shrewsbury Town lost 1–0, and later that month was one of only three players not from Wigan Athletic or Blackburn Rovers to be selected for the League One PFA Team of the Year. The following month, in the League One play-offs, Henderson kept two clean sheets in a 2–0 win over Charlton Athletic on aggregate to reach the final. Henderson started in goal in the final when Rotherham United beat Shrewsbury Town 2–1 after extra time, and he saved a penalty from David Ball after nine minutes.
Henderson made two separate statements, expressing his gratitude and admiration for the club, and his hope to one day return in the future.