Legendary Coach Xabier Azkargorta Passes Away
Renowned for leading Bolivia to its first World Cup qualification, he made his career in Spain and later in South America. He has died in the Andean country at the age of 72.
Javier Varela
Friday, 14 November 2025, 14:25
Spanish football is in mourning. Xabier 'Bigotón' Azkargorta has died at the age of 72 in Bolivia. The country that embraced him as one of their own, where he lived and where his name will be immortalised for the historic qualification of the green team for the 1994 World Cup in the United States, Bolivia's only qualification to date, with Xabier Azkargorta at the helm.
The coach passed away this Friday, November 14, after battling several heart complications over the last decade. Spanish by birth and Bolivian at heart, he arrived in the Andean country in 1993 and never left. He built his coaching career in Chile, Mexico, and Japan, but it was in Bolivia where he truly succeeded, managing the country's most important clubs: Oriente Petrolero, Bolívar, Sport Boys, and Atlético Palmaflor.
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