Son of former soccer player and nurse Rafael Márquez Álvarez was born 13 February 1979 in Zamora, Michoacán. He is a Mexican football centre back and defensive midfielder, who is currently playing for FC Barcelona in the Spanish La Liga and the Mexico national football team, where he is currently the captain.

Márquez began his career at Mexican club Atlas, for whom he debuted in 1996 at age 17. Márquez rose to prominence while with Atlas, making 77 appearances for the team and being runner-up in the league against Deportivo Toluca in penalties. In 1999, French club AS Monaco sign a contract for €6 million. Monaco scouts had gone to see Chilean player Pablo Contreras on a Copa America match against Mexico, but they were more impressed with Márquez’s performance, so they signed the defender. Marquez was an immediate success with Monaco, helping lead the team to the French title in his first season with the club. Despite pressures from larger clubs, he would remain with the Monegasque club until 2003, when Barcelona signed him for €5 million to revitalize their back line. In doing so, he became only the second Mexican to play for Barcelona, after Horacio Casarín.

In his first season with Barcelona, Márquez appeared 21 times, helping the team to a second place finish in La Liga. During his second season, he was moved from his natural position as a center back to a defensive midfield role, due to injuries to players Thiago Motta, Edmílson and Gerard López. He completed a great season, being one of the main players that helped Barcelona win its 17th Spanish League on 14 May 2005 after a 1-1 tie with Levante UD. After an injury in his left knee, he returned after a month to play against A.C. Milan in the first leg of the 2006 UEFA Champions League Semifinal. Barcelona, playing away at the San Siro, won 1-0.

Márquez was present in the UEFA Champions League final on 17 May 2006 for Barcelona, in which they won the tournament over Arsenal. This achievement made him the first ever Mexican football player ever to ever win this competition, something Hugo Sánchez was not able to acomplish during his time in La Liga with Real Madrid. After the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Barcelona extended his contract for the following 4 years to €38.5 million which will see his contract end in June 2010. Currently, he is negotiating a contract with Barcelona in order to retire in the club, which is his utmost desire.

He made his international debut on February 5, 1997, playing at his higest level. Márquez has been one of the Mexican national football team’s most important players. Márquez has played various tournament’s with the Mexican team, winning the 1999 FIFA Confederations Cup and the CONCACAF Gold Cup. Márquez started all four of Mexico’s games during the 2002 FIFA World Cup in Korea/Japan, where he was given the Captain’s Armband by then coach Javier Aguirre despite his young age of 23. He gave a strong performance during the group stage of the tournament. Márquez was an integral part of Mexico’s subsequent World Cup qualification campaign and was selected by Argentine coach Ricardo Lavolpe for the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.

During the 2006 FIFA World Cup, Márquez played in all of four of Mexico’s opening round matches, and scored the lone Mexican goal in a 2-1 loss to Argentina in the second round off a Pável Pardo free kick which was headed to the far post by Mario Méndez, allowing an unmarked Márquez to strike the ball into the back of the net. Since Mexico’s second round exit, he has spoken out about the need to encourage future Mexican football players to play in Europe to increase the competitiveness of the team.

Former Mexican coach Hugo Sánchez asked Márquez to participate in the 2007 CONCACAF Gold Cup and the 2007 Copa America. Rafael joined up with the team Mexico for the Gold Cup’s championship game against the United States after the conclusion of La Liga 2006-07. He is still currently the captain of the seleccion’s soccer team. He is still making a overall success on his soccer career, promising more to the future.