diff --git a/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/common/cache/Cache.java b/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/common/cache/Cache.java
index a8bb4e7b641..d24bb7e424d 100644
--- a/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/common/cache/Cache.java
+++ b/core/src/main/java/org/elasticsearch/common/cache/Cache.java
@@ -122,6 +122,7 @@ public class Cache<K, V> {
     }
 
     void setRemovalListener(RemovalListener<K, V> removalListener) {
+        Objects.requireNonNull(removalListener);
         this.removalListener = removalListener;
     }