diff --git a/django/contrib/admin/templates/admin/widgets/clearable_file_input.html b/django/contrib/admin/templates/admin/widgets/clearable_file_input.html
index 327b8ad16a..9fee235819 100644
--- a/django/contrib/admin/templates/admin/widgets/clearable_file_input.html
+++ b/django/contrib/admin/templates/admin/widgets/clearable_file_input.html
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 {% if is_initial %}<p class="file-upload">{{ initial_text }}: <a href="{{ widget.value.url }}">{{ widget.value }}</a>{% if not widget.required %}
 <span class="clearable-file-input">
 <input type="checkbox" name="{{ checkbox_name }}" id="{{ checkbox_id }}" />
-<label for="{{ checkbox_id }}">{{ clear_checkbox_label }}</label>{% endif %}</span><br />
+<label for="{{ checkbox_id }}">{{ clear_checkbox_label }}</label></span>{% endif %}<br />
 {{ input_text }}:{% endif %}
 <input type="{{ widget.type }}" name="{{ widget.name }}"{% include "django/forms/widgets/attrs.html" %} />{% if is_initial %}</p>{% endif %}
diff --git a/docs/releases/1.11.3.txt b/docs/releases/1.11.3.txt
index 5b3b1066a9..7085b02669 100644
--- a/docs/releases/1.11.3.txt
+++ b/docs/releases/1.11.3.txt
@@ -21,3 +21,5 @@ Bugfixes
 
 * Fixed admin's ``FieldListFilter.get_queryset()`` crash on invalid input
   (:ticket:`28202`).
+
+* Fixed invalid HTML for a required ``AdminFileWidget`` (:ticket:`28278`).
diff --git a/tests/admin_widgets/tests.py b/tests/admin_widgets/tests.py
index d53ac0b435..bb8f9df63f 100644
--- a/tests/admin_widgets/tests.py
+++ b/tests/admin_widgets/tests.py
@@ -431,6 +431,18 @@ class AdminFileWidgetTests(TestDataMixin, TestCase):
             '<input type="file" name="test" />',
         )
 
+    def test_render_required(self):
+        widget = widgets.AdminFileWidget()
+        widget.is_required = True
+        self.assertHTMLEqual(
+            widget.render('test', self.album.cover_art),
+            '<p class="file-upload">Currently: <a href="%(STORAGE_URL)salbums/'
+            r'hybrid_theory.jpg">albums\hybrid_theory.jpg</a><br />'
+            'Change: <input type="file" name="test" /></p>' % {
+                'STORAGE_URL': default_storage.url(''),
+            },
+        )
+
     def test_readonly_fields(self):
         """
         File widgets should render as a link when they're marked "read only."