Aleksandrs Starkovs
A Latvian football figure who transitioned from a sharp-shooting forward to a respected, long-serving coach shaping the domestic game.
Born 1955 (age 71)·Latvian footballer·Birthday: July 26·Baby Boomers
Biography
Born in 1955, Aleksandrs Starkovs carved out his place in Latvian football first as a forward, known for his goal-scoring instincts during the Soviet era. His deeper impact, however, came from the touchline. After hanging up his boots, Starkovs embarked on a coaching career that made him a fixture in the dugout for decades. He became a steady hand for the Latvian national team, guiding them through multiple European Championship qualifying campaigns and fostering a generation of homegrown talent. His club career was equally enduring, with notable spells at Skonto Riga and later FK Liepāja, where his pragmatic approach and deep knowledge of the local football landscape kept teams competitive. Starkovs's legacy is one of quiet consistency, a bridge between different eras of Latvian football who dedicated his life to its development.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Aleksandrs was born in 1955, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Aleksandrs Was Born
The biggest hits of 1955
#1 Movie
Lady and the Tramp
Best Picture
Marty
#1 TV Show
The $64,000 Question
Aleksandrs's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1955Born
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $9,550Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Rock Around the Clock" — Bill Haley & His CometsBest Picture: Marty
1960Started school
Kennedy-Nixon debates become first televised presidential debates
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $11,900Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Theme from A Summer Place" — Percy FaithBest Picture: The Apartment
1968Became a teenager
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1971Could drive
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1973Could vote
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1976Turned 21
Apple Computer founded; US bicentennial
Gas: $0.59/galHome: $29,300Min wage: $2.30/hrPresident: Gerald Ford"Silly Love Songs" — WingsBest Picture: Rocky
1985Turned 30
Live Aid concerts raise money for Ethiopian famine
Gas: $1.12/galHome: $62,900Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Careless Whisper" — Wham!Best Picture: Out of Africa
1995Turned 40
Oklahoma City bombing; Windows 95 released
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $96,500Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Gangsta's Paradise" — CoolioBest Picture: Braveheart
2005Turned 50
Hurricane Katrina devastates New Orleans; YouTube launches
Gas: $2.30/galHome: $167,500Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"We Belong Together" — Mariah CareyBest Picture: Crash
2015Turned 60
Paris climate agreement; same-sex marriage legalized in the US
Gas: $2.43/galHome: $171,900Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Uptown Funk" — Mark Ronson ft. Bruno MarsBest Picture: Spotlight
2025Turned 70
AI agents go mainstream
Gas: $3.10/galHome: $385,000Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"APT." — Rose & Bruno Mars
2026Age 71 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Served as the head coach of the Latvia national football team across two separate stints, in 2001–2004 and 2007–2013.
- Led Skonto Riga to victory in the Latvian Football Cup in 2012 during his tenure as manager.
- Coached FK Liepāja in the Latvian Higher League, contributing to the club's development in the 2010s.
Did You Know?
He played his entire senior club career for a single team, Daugava Riga, from 1974 to 1989.
Starkovs briefly served as the manager of the Latvia national futsal team in the 1990s.
His son, Māris Starkovs, also became a professional footballer who played for the Latvian national team.
“The goal is always the same: to put the ball in the net, whether from the pitch or the bench.”
