Thanks to the excellent season with “El Team Naranja”, he earned the spot to be part of the Colombian U-17 National Team with which they qualified and played in the 2007 World Cup in South Korea.
After that World Cup, James would take the step towards football abroad. Argentina would be his destination and, in February 2009, at the age of 17, he debuted with the Banfield shirt. There, with the ‘Drill’, James became the youngest foreign player to debut and score a goal in the first division of Argentine football. In addition, he became champion of the Apertura Tournament.
In 2010 he arrived at Porto, where he quickly became a key figure on the team. His ability, his vision of the game and his passing earned him the affection of the fans and put him on the map of the most important teams in the world. The performances of the ’10’ were fundamental for Porto to win the treble in the 2010/11 season.
A year later, he played with the Colombian U-20 National Team in the Toulon Esperanzas Tournament where he became champion under the guidance of Professor Eduardo Lara. Likewise, he played in the 2011 World Cup. His performance earned him a call from the then national coach, Leonel Álvarez, who took him to the senior team. His debut with the seniors was in the capital of Bolivia, La Paz, on October 1, 2011.
In 2013, Monaco acquired his services in France. In his first season with the club, James became the top scorer in the French League.
The White House
In the summer of 2014, and after an unforgettable performance where he became the top scorer at the World Cup in Brazil with six goals and, in addition, winning the Puskas Award, Real Madrid took his talent to the Bernabéu.
After nine titles, on July 11, 2017, his loan to Bayern Munich was made official, where he spent two seasons. He also spent time at Everton (2020/21), Al-Rayyan SC (2021/2022 and 2022/2023) and Olympiacos F. C (2022/2023). Currently, James plays for São Paulo F. C in the Brazilian Serie A Championship.
Data:
- James has worn the Colombian National Team shirt 100 times.
- Second top scorer of the national team with 27 goals.
- Participation in World Cups: Brazil 2014 and Russia 2018.
- Participation in the Copa América: Chile 2015, Brazil 2019 and United States 2024.
- Participation in four qualifiers: Brazil 2014, Russia 2018, Qatar 2022 and Mexico/United States/Canada 2026.
- James Rodríguez completes seventeen years with the National Team shirt, including lower divisions.
- Best player of the 2011 Toulon Hopes Tournament.
- Best goal, Golden Boot and in the ideal 11 of the 2014 Brazil World Cup.
- Puskás Award 2014.
- Two nominations for the Ballon d’Or in 2014 and 2015.
