James Rodriguez is a Colombian professional footballer who plays for the German club, FC Bayern Munich on loan from Real Madrid, and the Colombia national team. Through this article, we take a look at James Rodriguez Net Worth, James Rodriguez Endorsements and James Rodriguez Salary.
Football career:
James Rodriguez is an attacking midfielder and is regarded as one of the best in the world at his position. He began his professional career in 2006 with the Colombian second division club, Envigado. He played his first professional game in 2006 at the age of 14, thus becoming the second youngest Colombian player to start a professional match.
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After two years with Envigado, he moved to Argentina with Banfield. In 2009, he became a regular first-team player featuring in every game of the Apertura 2009. At just 17, he became the youngest foreigner to score a goal in Argentina.
His second goal for Banfield came on 26 September to fire his side to an important 2–1 win against Newell’s Old Boys. The victory helped Banfield win the Argentine championship for the first time in the club history.
In December 2009, Italian club, Udinese planned to make a bid for James for a reported €5 million after the 2010 Copa Libertadores. However, Banfield rejected the proposal, labelling the fee as “insufficient”.
The impressive performances paved the way for Europe. On 6 July 2010, Portuguese giants Porto signed him up for €5.1 million. He signed a four-year contract with a €30 million release clause.
On 15 December 2010, James scored his first competitive goal in Europe in a 3–1 home victory against Bulgarian club, CSKA Sofia. James scored a hat-trick and assisted once against Vitória de Guimarães in the 2011 Taça de Portugal Final, which Porto won 6–2. In his first season, he scored six goals, provided eight assists and helped Porto win the Europa League. Consequently, he signed a new five-year contract in which the release clause increased to €45 million.
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In the 2011–12 season, James scored 14 goals for Porto and delivered 11 assists. The impressive showing saw James win the LPFP Award for Breakthrough Player of 2011–12 Primeira Liga season at age 20. He became the first Colombian to achieve the feat. In 2012, he won the Portuguese Golden Ball award in 2012, becoming the second Colombian to win the award after Radamel Falcao as well as the youngest player ever to hold the honour.
In the 2012-13 season, he scored ten goals and 13 assists in 24 league appearances. Overall, in all competitions that season, he scored 13 goals and provided 15 assists in 32 appearances. He helped the club win the league once again, thus taking his trophy-haul to eight since joining the club three years ago.
In the summer of 2013, he signed up for Monaco for a transfer fee of €45 million, the second most expensive transfer in Portuguese football. James ended his debut season without a trophy. However, he helped Monaco secure a spot in the following season’s UEFA Champions League. On an individual level, he earned a spot in the star Ligue 1 XI and led Ligue 1 in assists.
James’ career took a turn for the good after his stunning display at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In the same year, he secured a dream move to Spanish team Real Madrid. In his first season with Real Madrid, he scored 17 goals in addition to winning the UEFA Super Cup and the FIFA Club World Cup.
The following season saw him win the UEFA Champions League, as he scored eight goals. In 2016-17 seasons, Real Madrid once again won the UEFA Champions League and the league title.
However, James lost his regular place in the team. He scored 11 goals and registered 13 assists, but chances were hard to come by. Consequently, James secured a loan move to Bayern Munich in 2017 for two years. He went on to win the 2017–18 Bundesliga title with Bayern, scoring seven goals and registering 11 assists in 23 Bundesliga appearances.
For Colombia, he made his senior debut in 2011 during the 2-1 win over Bolivia. He scored his first goal for Colombia against Peru. Colombia went on to win the match and boosted its place in the World Cup qualifying table. James marked his arrival at the highest stage at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. At the end of the group stage, he was ranked as the best performing player at the tournament by FIFA.
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He scored both goals to help his side defeat Uruguay 2–0 in the round of 16, taking Colombia to its first ever World Cup quarter-finals. Those goals made him the first player to score in all of his team’s opening matches since Ronaldo and Rivaldo in 2002. The midfielder ended his first World Cup campaign with six goals and two assists in five matches. He won the Golden Boot as the tournament’s top goalscorer. He also made it to the World Cup All Star XI.
He also featured in 2015 Copa América, 2016 Copa América Centenario and the 2018 FIFA World Cup.
James Rodriguez Endorsements:
Rodriguez’s impressive wealth is the result of his successful football career and lucrative endorsements. The Colombia international has penned down deals with Calvin Klein, Chinese mobile phone company Huawei Technologies and a financial trading platform, Libertex. His agreement with Adidas reportedly calls for him to wear the No. 10 jersey for every team he represents.
He has also done charity work with foundations like Fundacion Colombia Somos Todos, and We Are All Colombia.
James Rodriguez Salary:
Rodriguez earns $24.5 Million as salary amount from his club Bayern Munich and national contract with Colombia national football team combined.
James Rodriguez Net Worth:
Rodriguez’s net worth is estimated to be around $30m. He was ranked 91st in Forbes’ The World’s Highest-Paid Athletes 2017 but could not find a place in top 100 in 2018.
