James Leighton (born 24 July 1958) is a Scottish former footballer, who played as a goalkeeper. Leighton started his career with Aberdeen, where he won seven domestic trophies and the 1982-83 European Cup Winners' Cup under the management of Alex Ferguson. Ferguson then signed Leighton for Manchester United in 1988, but dropped him after he conceded three goals in the 1990 FA Cup Final. Leighton then had spells with Arsenal, Reading, Dundee and Sheffield United, and rebuilt his career after joining Hibernian in 1993. He returned to Aberdeen in 1997, leading to a career total of over 600 appearances in the league alone.