Cristian Roldan

College and amateur

Roldan declined invitations from the LA Galaxy and Chivas USA to join their academy teams and led the El Rancho Dons to an undefeated season with 26 wins. In his junior year, he had 21 goals and 21 assists for El Rancho and also played for youth club Union Independiente. During the 2012–13 season, he scored 54 goals and 30 assists and led El Rancho to a regional high school championship. Roldan was scouted by the University of Washington at a tournament in San Diego and spent his college career with the Washington Huskies. In his two seasons of college soccer, Roldan made a total of 41 appearances and tallied 10 goals and seven assists as he helped lead the team to a Pac-12 title in 2013. Roldan was named the 2013 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year, beating future Sounders teammate Jordan Morris from the Stanford Cardinal. During the college offseason, Roldan played in the Premier Development League for the Washington Crossfire. He joined the team in 2013 as part of preparations to join the Huskies. Roldan also played for the Portland Timbers U23s in the 2014 MLS Homegrown Game.

Seattle Sounders FC

2015: Debut season

On January 8, 2015, it was announced that Roldan had left college early to sign a Generation Adidas contract with Major League Soccer. He was expected to be selected early in the 2015 MLS SuperDraft, but was chosen late in the first round with the 16th overall pick by Seattle Sounders FC. The Sounders traded with Real…

2015: Youth level

Roldan represented the United States at under-20 level.

2017: Senior debut and first CONCACAF Gold Cup

He was also eligible to represent either Guatemala or El Salvador through his parents, and mentioned in an interview that he had been offered senior call-ups from both nations. On July 12, 2017, he was cap-tied to the United States national team by starting their 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup group stage match against Martinique.

2022: First FIFA World Cup

Roldan and Sounders teammate Jordan Morris were called up to the final roster for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Roldan had played limited minutes during the preceding World Cup qualifying campaign, but was chosen by Gregg Berhalter for his leadership in training and ability to play in several roles.

2026: Second FIFA World Cup

On May 26, 2026, Roldan was selected in the 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Roldan was featured in an Adidas commercial as a nine-year-old, selected for his soccer ball juggling skills from 110 kids who tried out for the commercial. Roldan was also named the 2013 Gatorade National Player of the Year in soccer while attending El Rancho High School in Pico Rivera, California.

Roldan is of Salvadoran and Guatemalan descent, and has an older brother named Cesar Jr., who works as a trainer for the LA Galaxy, and a younger brother Alex who has also played for the Sounders since 2019. He married physician assistant Ciana Baron on December 31, 2022.