Born in Kinshasa in February 1982, Herita Ilunga moved with his family to Paris as a child, starting his football career in the northern suburb of Sarcelles.

At the age of 13, Ilunga started training with Amiens SC, staying with the Somme-based club for four years before moving to Stade Rennais. There, he continued to show the promise that would ultimately lead to him becoming an instant success in English football.

Ilunga then decided to try his luck in a different country, moving to Spain at the age of 20, where he linked up with Espanyol. In Barcelona, the left-back featured exclusively for Espanyol's B team in the Spanish Third Division, but he still did enough to catch the eye of AS St Etienne coach Frederic Antonetti, who took him back to France, initially on loan, in 2003.

Ilunga would go on to spend four seasons at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, making 135 appearances for Les Verts and winning the club's player of the season award. The summer of 2007 saw Ilunga move to Toulouse, who had qualified for the 2007/08 UEFA Champions League. The defender appeared at Anfield as Toulouse lost 5-0 on aggregate to Liverpool at the third qualifying round stage.

Toulouse dropped into the UEFA Cup, with Ilunga making six appearances as Le Tef beat CSKA Sofia on away goals before falling at the group stage. Toulouse also endured a difficult campaign in Ligue 1, only staving off relegation on the final day of the season by beating Valenciennes 2-1.

Ilunga found himself out of favour at the Stadium Municipal at the start of the 2008/09 season and, after turning down the overtures of a host of European clubs, he joined West Ham United on a season-long loan deal on 1 September 2008. He would make his debut in the 3-2 Barclays Premier League defeat at West Bromwich Albion on 13 September and never lost his place for the remainder of the league campaign.

The African enjoyed a superb first season at the Boleyn Ground, making 35 Barclays Premier League appearances and scoring in the home FA Cup ties against Barnsley and Middlesbrough.

Ilunga's consistency and attacking adventure was rewarded with a contract until June 2013, which he signed in January 2009 before his permanent transfer was ultimately finalised with Toulouse four months later.

At international level, Ilunga helped DR Congo reach the quarter-finals of the African Cup of Nations in Egypt in 2006. The Leopards beat Togo and drew with Angola before being eliminated by the host nation in the last-eight.

Ilunga scored his first goal for his country in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Egypt in Cairo on 1 June 2008, but it was not enough to prevent the DR Congo being eliminated from the competition at the second qualifying round stage.