Estudiantes LP Rojo grew up in
La Plata, Argentina and joined his local side
Estudiantes at the age of ten. He played in the
2009 FIFA Club World Cup Final, coming on for extra time as Estudiantes lost 2–1 to
Barcelona in
Dubai. During his time at Estudiantes, Rojo won a
Copa Libertadores and an
Argentine Primera División title. The defender spent most matches as a
left-back and developed a reputation as a capable attacker, scoring his first goal in a 2–1 defeat against
LDU Quito in the
2010 Recopa Sudamericana.
Spartak Moscow in 2011 In December 2010, Rojo signed a five-year contract with
Spartak Moscow. He scored his only goal for Spartak on 20 April 2011, netting the opening goal of a 2–1 defeat of
Krasnodar in the quarter-finals of the
Russian Cup.
Sporting CP In July 2012, Rojo moved from Spartak Moscow to
Sporting CP for £3.5 million, signing a four-year contract. Rojo made his
Primeira Liga debut for Sporting on 19 August 2012, playing the entire match and receiving a yellow card in a 0–0 draw with
Vitória de Guimarães. He received his first red card for Sporting in a league match against
Porto on 7 October 2012, picking up two cautions within three minutes as Sporting fell to a 2–0 defeat. He scored his first goal for Sporting on 28 April 2013, netting the winner against
Nacional. Rojo played mostly at centre-back in his first season in Portugal, occasionally at left-back, as the team had a comparatively bad season, finishing seventh in the
league. In the second league match of the
2013–14 season, Rojo scored his first goal of the season, netting Sporting's second goal in their 4–0 win over
Académica de Coimbra. On 19 April 2014, Rojo was sent off in a Primeira Liga match against
Belenenses, but Sporting held on for a 1–0 win. In an improved season, he contributed six goals as Sporting finished as runners-up. Sporting president Bruno de Carvalho later alleged that third-party owners of Rojo who were not representatives of Manchester United had pressured his club into selling the player.
Manchester United in 2017 On 19 August 2014, an agreement to sell Rojo for €20 million (£16 million) was announced by both Sporting and Manchester United. The next day, United announced that they had signed him on a five-year contract, with
Nani moving to Sporting on a season-long loan. Rojo stated that it was a "dream for me" to play with Manchester United. Rojo missed three matches for United due to difficulties in gaining a
work permit, because of pending criminal charges in Argentina, where he is alleged to have had an altercation with a neighbour in 2010. On 4 September, he was granted a work permit by the
UK Border Agency to work in England. Ten days later he made his debut at
Old Trafford as United won for the first time in the season, playing the entirety of the 4–0 victory over
Queens Park Rangers. Rojo was stretchered off in United's 1–0 defeat in the
Manchester derby on 2 November, sustaining shoulder damage from a tackle on
Manchester City's
Martín Demichelis. It was later confirmed that he had dislocated his shoulder, adding to United's defensive injuries alongside
Jonny Evans and
Phil Jones. On 3 February 2015, Rojo scored his first goal for United, heading a ball played by
Robin van Persie for the second goal of a 3–0 win over
Cambridge United in an
FA Cup fourth round replay. During Manchester United's 2015 pre-season tour of North America, Rojo was expected to join up with the rest of the squad following an extended break granted after competing for Argentina in the Copa América. However, passport issues reportedly caused Rojo to miss pre-season tour entirely, and the matter was said to have "angered" manager
Louis van Gaal. Rojo was resultantly fined £140,000 for failing to join up with the rest of the squad on time. In the
2016 FA Cup Final, which United won 2–1 after extra time against
Crystal Palace, Rojo was booked in the first half for fouling
Pape Souaré and was substituted for
Matteo Darmian after 66 minutes. On 4 March 2017, Rojo scored his first Premier League goal to open a 1–1 home draw against
Bournemouth. He suffered a season-ending cruciate ligament injury on 20 April, during a 2–1 win over
Anderlecht in the quarter-finals of the Europa League, a tournament that United ended up winning. He made his return on 28 November 2017, in a 4–2 win at
Watford. On 16 March 2018, Rojo signed a new contract with Manchester United that would keep him at the club until June 2021, with the option to extend for a further year. In April 2019, after a run of injuries, Rojo said that United manager
Ole Gunnar Solskjær had told him he was part of his plans when Solskjær was appointed on a temporary basis in December 2018. On 30 January 2020, Rojo was loaned to his boyhood club, Estudiantes, for the remainder of the 2019–20 season; he had started only 13 United games in the past two seasons.
Boca Juniors On 2 February 2021, Rojo returned to Argentina once again to sign for
Boca Juniors for an undisclosed fee.
ESPN later reported that he heard about the transfer via social media. Rojo scored the opening goal in the
2022 Copa de la Liga Profesional final, a 3–0 win over
Tigre on 11 May. On 12 October, he suffered a right-knee ligament injury similar to one he experienced with Manchester United in 2017; he was ruled out for seven to eight months. In 2023, after leading Boca through the
knockout stages of Copa Libertadores, he missed the final after getting sent off during the semifinals against
Palmeiras. They were beaten 2–1 in the
final by
Fluminense. After some controversies in his last time with Boca Juniors (including a decision attributed to manager
Miguel Ángel Russo to separate him from the senior squad), Rojo finally cancelled his contract with the club in August 2025.
Racing Club On 10 August 2025, Rojo signed a one-year contract with
Racing Club. He was assigned a shirt with the name "Marcos R.", as his surname is the Spanish word for red, the colour of
Avellaneda derby rivals
Independiente. ==International career==