He turned professional at ADO Den Haag and then played for Twente before moving abroad to represent Hamburger SV, Juventus and Werder Bremen.

"[4] Elia made his professional debut for ADO Den Haag on 23 January 2005 against FC Groningen at age 17, coming on as 81st-minute substitute in a 3–0 loss.

[citation needed] However, ADO Den Haag's relegation, along with his some conflicts new coach Lex Schoenmaker and his lack of desire to want to play in the Eerste Divisie, contributed to Elia leaving the club at the end of the 2006–07 season.

[33] Since the start of the 2008–09 season, Elia improved under the new management of Steve McClaren, and continued to be a first team regular, playing in the midfield position.

[37] In the January transfer window, Arsenal, Ajax and PSV were linked with a move to sign Elia after his break-out season for Twente.

[42] In the Dutch Cup, the club progressed to the final against Heerenveen, where Elia scored the opener, which would not be enough as Twente lost on penalties after Youssouf Hersi missed the decisive kick.

[62] However, he suffered an ankle injury in the 15th minute and was substituted as a result, as Hamburger SV drew 1–1 draw at Mainz 05 on 28 November 2009.

[63] After missing one match, Elia returned to the first team from injury against 1899 Hoffenheim on 5 December 2009, coming on as a 61st-minute substitute, as the club drew 0–0.

[67] After missing two matches, he made his return to the first team from injury against Bayern Munich on 28 February 2010 and started the whole game, as Hamburger SV lost 1–0.

[72] But he knew nothing about a move and wanted to stay at Hamburg for another season despite expressing his desire to play in the UEFA Champions League.

[79] His performance continued to attract interests from European clubs in the January transfer window, but he ended up staying at Hamburger SV.

[91] He made his debut for the club, starting the match and played 45 minutes before being substituted at half time, in a 1–1 draw against Catania on 25 September 2011.

[118] Elia then played a contribution for the club when he set up two goals in two matches between 30 March 2014 and 5 April 2014, coming against Hannover 96 and Schalke 04 respectively.

On 6 August 2015, Elia signed a two-year deal with Dutch side Feyenoord under the management of former Arsenal player Giovanni van Bronckhorst instead of joining Southampton.

[163] It wasn't until on 23 October 2016 when he returned to the first team, coming on as a 60th-minute substitute against rivals, Ajax and set up the equalising goal, in a 1–1 draw.

[170] It wasn't until on 5 April 2017 when he made his return to the first team from injury and scored his ninth goal of the season, in an 8–0 win against Go Ahead Eagles to bounce back from the previous defeat against Ajax.

[172] Two weeks later on 16 April 2017, he scored his tenth goal of the season, in a 2–0 win against Utrecht to help the club maintain their lead at the top of the table.

[182] Elia scored in both legs of the UEFA Champions League's play–offs round against Sevilla, as the club were eliminated following a 4–3 loss on aggregate.

[192] Despite aiming to help İstanbul Başakşehir win the league for the first time, the club ended up finishing second place after surrendering their title chances to Galatasaray, in a 2–1 loss on 19 May 2019.

[194] However, Elia suffered an injury in the 23rd minute against Fenerbahçe on 24 August 2019, as the club lost 2–0; which subsequently saw the player missed two matches.

[195] But he made his return from injury, coming on as a 70th-minute substitute and setting up the fourth goal of the game, in a 5–0 win against Çaykur Rizespor on 27 September 2019.

[217] Elia began practicing with his former club ADO Den Haag during the autumn of 2021, who were competing in the second-tier Eerste Divisie.

[227] Elia made his debut for the U21 national team, coming on as a 69th-minute substitute and scored from a penalty, in a 2–2 draw against Germany U21 on 15 August 2006.

[229] It wasn't until on 10 August 2007 when Elia was called up to the U21 national team and made an appearance, coming on as a 67th-minute substitute, in a 1–0 win against Macedonia U21 twelve days later.

[244] On 27 May 2010, Dutch manager Bert van Marwijk announced that Elia would be part of the 23-man final squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

[245] Prior to the tournament, Elia caused controversy in the Dutch media when he tweeted "cancer Moroccan", prompting a ban of use of Twitter.

[252] He made his first start of the year for the senior national team against San Marino on 3 September 2010 and played 59 minutes before being substituted, in a 5–0 win.

[255] Following this, Elia found his playing time, coming from the substitute and he helped the senior national team qualify for the UEFA Euro 2012 after beating Finland 2–0 on 6 September 2011.

[265] In an interview with Trouw, Elia said that he is a religious person and became a first-time father when his girlfriend Sanne gave birth to a baby daughter.

[273] After spending a night in jail, he was released and Feyenoord's manager Van Bronckhorst was said to be disappointed with his action and the club fined Elia as a result.