Ridgewell, who earned eight caps for England at under-21 level, began his senior career with Aston Villa. He spent time on loan at A.F.C. Bournemouth in 2002, before moving to Villa's local rivals Birmingham City in 2007, where he was part of the 2011 Football League Cup Final-winning team. He played for two and a half seasons with West Bromwich Albion, who released him at the end of 2013–14. He then joined the Portland Timbers, whom he captained to victory in MLS Cup 2015. During the MLS off-season, he spent time on loan in England with Wigan Athletic and Brighton &amp; Hove Albion. He ended his career in 2020 after short spells at Hull City and Southend United.