He started his football career in the academy at Blackburn Rovers. He made his debut for Blackburn in the EFL Championship in 2022. He signed for Crystal Palace in February 2024. He was praised for his performances for an in-form Palace team, earning him selection for the England squad in UEFA Euro 2024.
Wharton supported Blackburn Rovers as a young child and aged four, in 2008, he was club mascot for a Blackburn game against Chelsea. Two years later he joined the Blackburn academy.[2]
In February 2022, Wharton signed his first professional contract at Blackburn Rovers, a two-and-a-half year deal with an option through to 2025.[3]
On 10 August 2022, Wharton made his professional debut after being named in the starting XI for a 4–0 EFL Cup first round victory at Ewood Park against Hartlepool United.[4][5]
On 27 August 2022, Wharton made his league debut against Stoke City coming off the bench at half time for Joe Rankin-Costello.[6] On 31 August 2022, Wharton made his full 90 minutes league debut against Blackpool, winning Player of the Match for an outstanding performance.[7] On 22 October 2022, Wharton scored his first goal for the club during a victory over Birmingham City.[8]
On 1 February 2024, Crystal Palace announced the signing of Wharton on a five-and-a-half year contract.[9] The fee was undisclosed by the club, but reported to be an initial fee of £18 million, which could potentially rise to £22 million.[10] He made his first appearance for the club two days later, coming off the bench against rivalsBrighton & Hove Albion in a 4–1 defeat.[11] Wharton started all 15 of Crystal Palace's remaining Premier League fixtures.
On 16 September 2022, Wharton along with Blackburn teammate Ashley Phillips were called up to the England under-19 squad.[12][13] Wharton made his debut in a 2–0 win against Montenegro.[14] On 31 August 2023, Wharton was included in England under-20 training camp squad.[15] On 16 November, he made his U20 debut during a 3–0 defeat to Italy at the Eco-Power Stadium.[16] On 25 March 2024, he received his first call up for the England under-21 team for a Euro qualifying match, and made his debut the following day, coming on as a substitute in a 7–0 win over Luxembourg.[17]
On 21 May 2024, Wharton received his first senior call up as part of the 33-player preliminary squad for UEFA Euro 2024.[18] He made his England debut, as a substitute on 3 June during a 3–0 win against Bosnia and Herzegovina.[19] On 6 June 2024, he was named in the final 26-man squad for the tournament.[20]
Wharton's intelligence and technical ability is a notable characteristic of his playing style. The head of Blackburn Rovers academy, Stuart Jones, told BBC Radio 5『In terms of his attributes, he was always an outstanding footballer, his ability on the football, his football intelligence and game understanding, he sees things that possibly other players don’t see and he’s always shown that from a young age.』Following his England debut, Gareth Southgate commented on his ability to receive the ball.[21]
