James David Rodríguez Rubio (born 12 July 1991) is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for Liga MX club León and captains the Colombia national team.

[4][5] Starting his career at Envigado, and then moving to Argentina side Banfield, James became well known in Europe during his time at Porto, winning several trophies and individual awards during his three years at the club.

In the summer of 2020, he signed for Premier League club Everton on a free transfer,[7] staying there for one season before joining Qatar's Al-Rayyan and Greece's Olympiacos in 2021 and 2022, respectively.

[8][9] He also represented his nation at the Copa América in 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2024, winning a third-place medal in 2016 and reaching the final in 2024, the latter in which he received the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player.

[16] For the Clausura 2010, on 13 February 2010, James scored a golazo in the match against archrivals Lanús with a left-footed lob to make the game 2–0 in the final minutes.

After the game, daily sports website Diario Olé compared his playing and personal style to Cristiano Ronaldo and nicknamed him the "James Bond of Banfield".

His wonderful scoring season continued with a brace in the Copa Libertadores group match away to Uruguayan club Nacional on 10 March.

Since fellow Colombians Radamel Falcao, Fredy Guarín and Brazilian Hulk left the club during the last two seasons, James was able to start more regularly than before.

[55] In the final match of the season against Paços de Ferreira on 19 May, James was tripped inside the box and secured a penalty that was later scored by Lucho Gonzalez, which contributed to the 2–0 victory that led to Porto's third consecutive league title.

[63] James began the 2014 calendar year by making his Coupe de France debut in a match against Vannes, where he both assisted and scored a goal in a 3–2 victory.

[65] In the French media, James was referred to as "perhaps" the best footballer in Ligue 1 due to his impressive debut season with Monaco,[66] although he stated that he still required more time in the league to fully adapt.

In a post-match interview during the 2014 FIFA World Cup, James stated his "love", "admiration" and "passion" for Real Madrid, saying that it would be a "life's dream" to play for them after his performances aroused rumors linking him to the Spanish club.

[75] The amount spent on his transfer fee led many to referring James as a Galáctico after he was given the number 10 shirt worn by Madrid legends such as Luís Figo and Ferenc Puskás.

[79] Real Madrid President Florentino Pérez would follow with a speech of his own, stating that he welcomed James, a "lover" and "long supporter" of the club who will never forget the day he made his dream a reality.

[82] James made his Champions League debut for Real in the group stage opening match against Basel, where he scored the fourth goal in a 5–1 victory.

[111] In the semi-finals of the 2017–18 UEFA Champions League season, James scored the equalizing goal in a 2–2 draw against his parent club at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium, but Bayern failed to reach the final as they lost 3–4 on aggregate.

[122] James scored two goals and provided an assist for his international teammate Yerry Mina in a 4–2 victory at Goodison Park against Brighton & Hove Albion on 3 October 2020.

[130] Upon arrival, Rodríguez was handed the number 10 jersey, previously worn by Rony Lopes who had departed to play on loan for Ligue 1 side Troyes.

[137] In July 2024 his contract with São Paulo was terminated by mutual consent, with James making 22 appearances and scoring two goals in his spell with the Brazilian club.

[140] Following his departure from Rayo, there was speculation about a transfer to Junior,[141] with club president Fuad Char saying that he would be paid one of the biggest salaries in Colombian football.

[148] He was selected as the man of match due to his incredible performance including the initiation of the goal scored in the last minute by his former Porto teammate Radamel Falcao which gave Colombia a 2–1 win in La Paz.

James scored a stunning volley from a 30-yard free kick against Chile, leveling the game to an eventual 3–1 away victory boosting Colombia to the second place in the qualifying stages.

James made a good comeback when he scored the winning goal in a 1–0 victory over Ecuador during the final stages of the world cup qualifiers.

[173] James was called up to represent Colombia at the 2015 Copa América in Chile,[174] where his team was eliminated 5–4 on penalties by eventual finalists Argentina on 27 June, following a 0–0 draw.

[176] On 3 June, he started in Colombia's opening 2–0 win against tournament hosts the United States, scoring his team's second goal from the penalty spot although he was forced off early due to an injury.

[180] James made his first direct contribution towards qualification, scoring a goal in a heated duel against Copa America champions Chile, securing a 1–1 away draw.

[195] In the quarter-finals of the tournament against defending champions Chile on 28 June, following a 0–0 draw after regulation time, James scored in the resulting penalty shoot-out; however, Colombia were defeated 5–4 and were eliminated from the competition.

[196] On 28 May 2021, James was ruled out of the squad for the 2021 Copa América due to his lack of conditioning, i.e. for not having the optimal physical level, as he had recently been recovering from injury.

[203] In the semi-final clash against Uruguay, he provided the assist from a corner kick for Jefferson Lerma's winner in a 1–0 victory to send his national team to the final.

[215][216] His goal scoring abilities were a highlight of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, where he managed to claim the Golden Boot despite Colombia's elimination in the quarter finals following a 2–1 loss to Brazil.