James Rodriguez signs for Rayo Vallecano in return to Spanish football

Madrid. Colombian midfielder James Rodriguez will return to play in the Spanish football league after his signing for Rayo Vallecano was made official today, after reviving his laurels this summer in the Copa América.

The 33-year-old Colombian midfielder thus returns to the Spanish capital, where he played for Real Madrid between 2014 and 2020, a period in which he showed glimpses of his quality, without ever consolidating himself as an emblematic player of the franchise, to the point of being loaned for two years (2017-2019) to Bayern Munich.

“I feel great joy to play for a club like Rayo, which is historic in La Liga, and I am arriving with the desire to do things well and win,” James told local media after his signing was completed.

The Colombian player made the leap to European football at just 19 years old in 2010, signed by Portuguese side Porto, a team where he shone until 2013, and then spent one season at AS Monaco, from which he left for Madrid in 2014 for 75 million euros and after standing out with his country’s national team at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

After leaving the Merengue team, he played for English club Everton (2020-2021) and then went through several contracts outside the five major European leagues: at Al-Rayyan of Qatar (2021-2022), Olympiacos of Greece (2022-2023) and Sao Paulo of Brazil (2023-2024).

At the end of July he terminated his contract with Sao Paulo, but before signing with Rayo Vallecano, he took part in the Copa América, played in several American cities, in which he led Colombia to the final, lost to Argentina 0-1 in extra time with the decisive goal by the albiceleste Lautaro Martínez.

At the American football event, James was chosen as the tournament’s Most Valuable Player (MVP), thanks to the leadership he showed and especially the six assists he added at decisive moments for his team.

The Colombian midfielder follows in the footsteps of his compatriot Radamel Falcao, who played for Rayo between 2021 and 2024, and joins the team precisely in the season that the Spanish club will celebrate 100 years.