Sheffield Wednesday promotion hero Will Vaulks wins prestigious EFL award for a fourth time
Will Vaulks was the recipitent of another EFL Community Player of the Season award at the 2026 EFL Awards.
Former Sheffield Wednesday midfielder Will Vaulks was crowned the winner of the EFL Community Player of the Season award at the annual EFL Awards in London on Sunday evening.
Vaulks, who is now at Oxford United, scooped the accolade for the second time in three years after more outstanding work in the local community.
The 32-year-old, who spent two seasons at Hillsborough, making 91 appearances, saw off competition from Rotherham United’s Hamish Douglas and Bristol Rovers defender Taylor Moore to be installed as the overall recipient of the gong. Douglas and Moore had won the divisional awards covering League One and League Two respectively.
Vaulks’ coronation at Grosvenor House in London means he has now won the award on four separate occasions, previously scooping it in 2019, 2021 and 2024.
The midfielder, who was a popular figure throughout his time at Wednesday, helping them clinch promotion from League One in 2022/23 and preserve their Championship status the following season, has won his latest EFL Community Player of the Season award after being recognised for leading suicide-prevention advocacy across Oxfordshire through the Can We Talk? campaign.
His work includes workplace pledges, club-wide training, adoption of wellbeing technology, extensive community engagement and national awareness activity reaching millions. The project has reached more than two million people online, while more than 11,000 supporters have engaged in person through dedicated matchday activities, suicide prevention workshops and community events.
After winning the award, Vaulks said: “A lot of people know this because they have seen me a few times, but I lost both my Grandfathers when I was a teenager. Over the last few years, sort of coming towards the end of playing, I have felt like it’s time to open up about it and give back.
“I feel like we have a voice as footballers, rightly or wrongly, and little kids will listen to us. It is a message of positivity, of hope. But it is also important that I have to say it with everyone in the room: if you really care about your players, you really care about your staff, then you need to be getting a workplace pledge into your football club because it is saving peoples lives in our club.
“I have to say that. I am very appreciative and thank you very much.”