James Riley

College and amateur

Riley played college soccer at Wake Forest University, and in the USL Premier Development League with both Carolina Dynamo and his hometown team, Colorado Springs Blizzard.

Professional

New England Revolution drafted Riley in the second round of the 2005 MLS SuperDraft, and he acquitted himself well in his rookie season, playing various positions and scoring a goal. He continued to keep himself in the mix in defense, starting the majority of the games in 2006 and 2007. Riley was selected by the San Jose Earthquakes in the 2007 MLS Expansion Draft and subsequently made 24 appearances for the team before being taken by the Seattle Sounders FC in the 2008 MLS Expansion Draft. He stayed with Seattle through the 2011 season, helping the club win three consecutive U.S. Open Cup championships. Riley was left exposed by Seattle in the 2011 MLS Expansion Draft and he was selected by expansion side Montreal Impact in the November 23, 2011, draft. He was then immediately traded with allocation money to Chivas USA for Justin Braun and Gerson Mayen. Riley was traded to D.C. United on February 14, 2013, for a 2015 Supplemental Draft pick. The trade was later described as being part of a "systematic expulsion of players" at Chivas USA who did not fit the parent club's Mexican-only policy. Riley won his 5th US Open Cup title in 2013 with D.C. United. In the sixth minute of stoppage time there was on open header in the box from Álvaro Saborío that Riley…

Club

As of match played October 25, 2015

Riley was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado, to an African American father and a Korean mother. His parents divorced a year after he was born. Riley and his sister were raised by his mother in the Denver area.