Benjamin Lewis Wilmot (born 4 November 1999) is an English professional footballer who plays for EFL Championship club Stoke City.
[8] As a first-year scholar, he signed his first professional contract with the club in April 2017, having played regularly throughout Stevenage's FA Youth Cup run during the 2016–17 season.
[8][9] He made his first-team debut on 3 October 2017, playing the whole match in the centre of defence as Stevenage drew 0–0 away at Milton Keynes Dons in the EFL Trophy.
[17] Wilmot made his first-team debut for Watford in the club's EFL Cup tie away at Reading on 29 August 2018, starting and playing the whole match in a 2–0 win.
[21] He made his Swansea debut in the club's 3–1 home victory over Northampton Town in the EFL Cup on 13 August 2019, playing the whole match.
[22][23] Wilmot made just two appearances in the opening two months of the season,[23] eventually making his Championship debut as an late substitute in a 2–1 away win at Charlton Athletic on 2 October 2019.
[24] He scored his first goal for the club in the South Wales derby; his first-half header proved decisive in an eventual 1–0 victory on 27 October 2019.
[28][30] Having played "a pivotal role" in Watford's automatic promotion-winning season, Wilmot attracted transfer interest from a number of clubs.
[40] Wilmot had a frustrating 2023–24 season as having started as a regular in the first team he picked up a freak knee injury after colliding with the goalpost against Southampton in October 2023 which restricted him to 29 appearances.
[47] Described as a "ball-playing midfielder" in the youth system at Stevenage,[13] Wilmot moved into central defence where he was deployed during his breakthrough season in the first-team with the club.
[13][48] After signing for Watford, manager Javi Gracia stated that Wilmot "has the intelligence" to play in a holding midfield role in front of the two central defenders.