James Rodríguez Announces His Retirement from the Colombian National Team: His Copa América Stats

• The Colombian captain announced the end of his time with La Tricolor after more than a decade as one of the national team's leading figures.

• He played in four editions of the CONMEBOL Copa América™ and reached the Final at the 2024 edition in the United States.

• In his final appearance, he was named the tournament's Best Player and set a record for assists in a single edition.

James Rodríguez announced his retirement from the Colombian National Team. The midfielder brought an end to his time with La Tricolor after more than a decade as one of the team's leading figures.

The Colombian No. 10 featured in four editions of the CONMEBOL Copa América™: 2015, 2016, 2019 and 2024. His final appearance in the competition came at the 2024 edition in the United States, when Colombia reached the Final and James was named the tournament's Best Player.

His farewell marks the end of a career in which he played a leading role for different generations of the Colombian National Team and left an impressive statistical record in the continental tournament.

James Rodríguez's CONMEBOL Copa América™ journey

James Rodríguez played in his first CONMEBOL Copa América™ at Chile 2015. Colombia advanced to the Quarter-Finals, where they were eliminated by Argentina on penalties.

A year later, he featured in the CONMEBOL Copa América Centenario 2016™, held in the United States. La Tricolor finished third after defeating the hosts in the third-place match.

At Brazil 2019, James once again represented Colombia. The team finished the Group Stage with three wins and was eliminated by Chile in the Quarter-Finals, once again on penalties.

His fourth and final appearance came at the CONMEBOL Copa América 2024™, an edition in which Colombia reached the Final and the midfielder produced one of his most impressive performances in a Tricolor shirt.

James Rodríguez's CONMEBOL Copa América™ stats

Throughout his appearances in the competition, James Rodríguez played 20 matches, scored three goals and recorded nine assists, according to data provided by Opta.

The midfielder also recorded 47 shots and 55 passes leading to a shot, with a 79% passing accuracy.

Of his 20 matches in the tournament, 11 ended in victories for Colombia.

James Rodríguez's CONMEBOL Copa América™ statistics:

Matches played: 20

Goals: 3

Assists: 9

Matches won: 11

Source: Opta.

James is also the Colombian player with the most assists in the CONMEBOL Copa América™ since 2013, according to Opta records.

CONMEBOL Copa América 2024™, his final standout performance

The 2024 edition in the United States represented one of the highlights of James Rodríguez's career in the competition.

As Colombia's captain, he was one of the key figures in a team that finished top of its group, defeated Panama in the Quarter-Finals and overcame Uruguay in the Semifinals.

La Tricolor reached the CONMEBOL Copa América™ Final for the third time in its history, following the 1975 and 2001 editions.

In the decisive match, played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Argentina won 1-0 thanks to a Lautaro Martínez goal in extra time.

James finished the tournament with six assists, a record for a single edition of the competition, and was named the Best Player of the CONMEBOL Copa América 2024™.

His final continental appearance ended with Colombia as runners-up and with the tournament's top individual award.

Messi, Neymar and James: the end of a generation of No. 10s

James Rodríguez's retirement follows the departures of Lionel Messi and Neymar from the Argentina and Brazil national teams, respectively, also announced in 2026. The three players featured in different editions of the CONMEBOL Copa América™ and represented their countries during a generation defined by some of South America's biggest football stars.

James said farewell with four appearances, 20 matches, three goals and nine assists. His final edition, in 2024, ended with Colombia finishing as runners-up and James being named the tournament's Best Player.

Three national teams, three No. 10s and a generation that left its mark on the history of the CONMEBOL Copa América™.

Data provided by OPTA*.