Soccer Aid star called out for controversial moment during historic match

A big name at Soccer Aid has been called out online for their behaviour during during the historic match at the London Stadium.

On Sunday evening, West Ham United's London Stadium hosted the 2026 Soccer Aid match as the annual charity event celebrated its 20th anniversary.

As always, the match saw popular celebrities and former players come together to raise money for UNICEF in a clash between England and the Rest of the World teams.

Representing England, football legends like Wayne Rooney, Jermain Defoe and Jill Scott were joined by the likes of fan favourites Angry Ginge and actors Tom Hiddleston and Owen Cooper, who made history as the youngest ever player in Soccer Aid.

Meanwhile on the other side of the pitch, football icons Jordi Alba, Leonardo Bonucci and Michael Essien led a team including singer-songwriter Dermot Kennedy, IT Crowd actor Chris O'Dowd and Sidemen stars Ethan 'Behzinga' Payne and Tobi Brown.

After a thrilling match it was England who came away as the victors in the match with the opening goal from F1 actor Damson Idris, who scored , and a brace from Defoe, who is now Soccer Aid's top goalscorer, securing a 3-2 win for the home side.

READ MORE: What happened to Soccer Aid co-founder who had to quit playing in games

However, while the majority of the England team impressed throughout the match, there was one player who was called out for her behaviour during her short stint on the pitch.

Among the social media stars taking part in Soccer Aid 2026 was podcaster and former I'm A Celeb contestant GK Barry, who carried out presenting duties during the game before coming onto the pitch to represent England late in the first half.

As soon as she came on the pitch, it was clear that GK Barry - real name Grace Keeling - was massively popular with the London crowd, and she was loving it.

So much so, that while England were on the attack, she completely missed a pass from teammate Tom Grennan as she had turned her back to match to interact with the crowd.

gk barry in soccer aid is absolutely sending me 😭 pic.twitter.com/iMH2bOnIrg

— kaley (@kalec55) May 31, 2026

Although the moment was fairly light-hearted and funny, particularly given the fact England went on to win the match, it's clear that it upset some people on social media.

Reacting to the clip, one Soccer Aid fan wrote: "I can't stand people like GK Barry. Has literally zero footballing ability and acts like a clown on the pitch and makes everything about her.

"Ruins the actual game while everyone else is trying."

While another joked: "GK Barry is easily the second worst player soccer aid has ever seen."

Later adding that only Tommy Fury put in a worse performance during his Soccer Aid appearance in 2023.

Soccer Aid 2026 breaks record during 20th anniversary

However, the vast majority of fans tuning in to Soccer Aid this year enjoyed what was a fun 90 minutes of chaotic football all raising money for a good cause.

And that's exactly what it did because after the match, co-founder Robbie Williams revealed that a record-breaking total of around £16.5 million had been raised for UNICEF, taking the historic total from the event to around £137million.