Will James Rodríguez make his debut for Minnesota United this weekend?
A marquee Minnesota signing for the 2026 MLS season, former Real Madrid star Rodríguez is yet to get his first game time for the Loons.
James Rodriguez has said he expects to be available for his long-awaited Minnesota United debut tomorrow, as Cameron Knowles’ men visit Vancouver Whitecaps on matchday four of the Major League Soccer regular season.
“Next weekend I’m playing on Sunday,” Rodríguez told a live stream with the content creator Pelicanger this week. Asked to clarify whether he meant that he’s now fit to make his Minnesota bow, he replied: “Yes, yes, God willing. Against [Thomas] Müller’s team, Vancouver I think.”
Why hasn’t James played for Minnesota yet?
Signed by Minnesota ahead of the 2026 MLS season, on a contract initially running until June, Rodríguez has sat out the Loons’ first three games of the new campaign.
After a lack of fitness saw him left out of the squad for Minnesota’s season-opening draw against Austin FC on Feb. 21, Rodríguez then made the bench for the Loons’ 1-0 win over FC Cincinnati six days later, but remained unused.
Speaking after the Cincinnati game, head coach Knowles said the Colombia star’s minimal match sharpness made it unwise to introduce him as a substitute in such a closely-contested game. “I don’t think that was the ideal circumstances to bring him into,” Knowles explained.
Against Nashville SC on Mar. 8, Rodríguez then missed out again after suffering a prematch injury. Ahead of Minnesota’s 3-1 defeat in Tennessee, Knowles told reporters that the 34-year-old had sustained a “contusion” in practice and was to be omitted from the team’s matchday-three roster “out of an abundance of caution”.
— Minnesota United FC (@MNUFC) March 10, 2026
When was James’s last game?
Rodríguez last appeared in club soccer in November, when he played his final game for Mexican team Club León. The attacking midfielder then parted company with León at the end of 2025, before moving to MLS in early February.
What time is James’s potential MLS debut? How can I watch it in the U.S.?
On MLS matchday four, Minnesota United visit Vancouver Whitecaps on Sunday, Mar. 15, with kickoff at BC Place scheduled for 4:30 p.m. ET/1:30 p.m. PT. You watch the game on the streaming service Apple TV, which costs $12.99 a month after a free, seven-day trial.
While Minnesota sit 10th in the Western Conference, with four points, the Whitecaps are one of four teams in the West who have a 100% record in 2026. The Canadians, who were MLS runners-up in 2025, have posted wins over Real Salt Lake (1-0), Toronto FC (3-0) and Portland Timbers (4-1).
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