Javier Alessandro Jacutin Mariona (born 17 October 2004) is a Filipino professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who currently plays as an

attacking midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

or a

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People *Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Smal ...

for

USL League One USL League One (USL1) is a professional men's association football, soccer league in the United States that had its inaugural season in 2019 USL League One season, 2019. The United States soccer league system, Division III league is operated ...

club

AV Alta FC AV Alta Football Club, commonly referred to as AV Alta FC or Alta, is an American professional soccer team based in Lancaster, California. First announced in 2023, the team plays in the USL League One since 2025. Their home field is Lancaster M ...

and the Philippines national team. Born in the United States and of Salvadoran and Filipino descent, he is a former youth international for El Salvador.

Early and personal life

Mariona was born in Los Altos,

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

to a Salvadoran father, Rodrigo Mariona (son of Salvadoran football legend

Salvador Mariona Salvador Antonio Mariona Rivera (born 27 December 1943) is a Salvadoran former footballer who played as a defender. At international level, he represented his country at the 1970 FIFA World Cup in Mexico. Club career Born in Santa Tecla, Mar ...

), and a Filipino mother, former tennis player

Marisue Jacutin Marisue Jacutin de Mariona (born 14 May 1979) is a Filipino former professional tennis player. Jacutin is originally from Cagayan de Oro but now lives in the United States. Short in stature at five foot, Jacutin was a right-handed player with a ...

(daughter of Dicky and Suzette Jacutin). He has one sister, 5-star tennis recruit Bella Jacutin-Mariona. As a child, he enjoyed food, watching extreme sports (he is a fan of

Travis Pastrana Travis Alan Pastrana (born October 8, 1983) is an American professional athlete known for his success across multiple disciplines, including freestyle motocross, rally racing, NASCAR, and stunt performance. He rose to prominence in the early 2000s ...

), and playing

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

, tennis, taekwondo, skateboarding and golf. At age six, he played for a 7 to 8-year-old

team because of his "superior talent". According to his mother, "Javier loves sinigang, nilagang baka, adobo, pancit and he’s a big rice fan! Javier completely understands Spanish and some Visayan, but answers back in English since it is the language commonly spoken at home." When asked what he would do if not a footballer, she said "Javier the Monster Truck Driver". At just twelve years old, he was already receiving offers from European clubs.

Club career

Mariona was signed as a USL Academy player by

Oakland Roots Oakland Roots Sports Club is an American professional soccer club based in Oakland, California. The club competes in the USL Championship (USLC) as a member of the Western Conference. Founded in 2018 by Edreece Arghandiwal and Benno Nagel, the c ...

on 24 July 2021. He made his debut as a late substitute in a 3–1 win against

Tacoma Defiance The Tacoma Defiance, formerly Seattle Sounders FC 2, are an American professional soccer team based in the Puget Sound region in Tukwila, Washington, United States. The team competes in MLS Next Pro, a league in the third tier of the United Sta ...

on 29 August. He made his

UPSL The United Premier Soccer League (UPSL) is an American for-profit soccer league that was founded in Santa Ana in Southern California, with teams in regionalized conferences throughout the United States, and recently Canada and Mexico. The leagu ...

debut for

Project 51O Project 51O is a soccer club from Oakland, California competing in USL League Two and United Premier Soccer League. They are the reserve club of USL Championship club Oakland Roots SC. The name 51O is partly inspired by Oakland's 510 area code, ...

the next day, wearing the number 10 shirt and scoring the only goal for his side in a 1–1 draw against MCSC Jaguars. Mariona signed his first professional contract in January 2025, joining

expansion side

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mariona, Javier 2004 births Living people Sportspeople from Los Altos, California Soccer players from Santa Clara County, California Filipino men's footballers Philippines men's international footballers Salvadoran men's footballers 21st-century Salvadoran sportsmen El Salvador men's under-20 international footballers American men's soccer players Men's association football forwards Oakland Roots SC players USL Championship players Filipino people of Salvadoran descent Salvadoran people of Filipino descent American sportspeople of Salvadoran descent American sportspeople of Filipino descent De Anza Force players 21st-century American sportsmen USL League Two players United Premier Soccer League players Laredo Heat players Des Moines Menace players Central Valley Fuego FC players AV Alta FC players