Aki Riihilahti
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Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Aki Pasinpoika Riihilahti | ||
Date of birth | 9 September 1976 | ||
Place of birth | Helsinki, Finland | ||
Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||
Position(s) | Defensive midfielder | ||
Youth career | |||
1982–1994 |
HJK | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1995–1999 |
HJK | 62 | (11) |
1996 | → Honka (loan) | 3 | (0) |
1999–2001 | Vålerenga | 47 | (5) |
2001–2006 | Crystal Palace | 157 | (13) |
2006–2007 | 1. FC Kaiserslautern | 10 | (1) |
2007–2009 | Djurgården | 12 | (0) |
2009–2011 |
HJK | 40 | (6) |
Total | 301 | (33) | |
International career | |||
1998–2007 | Finland | 69 | (11) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
Aki Pasinpoika Riihilahti (born 9 September 1976) is a retired
Career
Club career
Riihilahti started his career at
After two seasons in Norway, he joined
After his contract with Palace expired in the summer of 2006, Riihilahti was picked up by
International career
Riihilahti made his debut for the Finnish national team on 5 February 1998 against Cyprus. He was a regular for Finland for most of the 2000s, and earned 69 caps scoring 11 goals. He is part of the Finnish Golden generation in football, but mainly due to his work as football director at International level he has become one of the most well-known Finnish football person.
Administrative career
Riihilahti has worked as the CEO of HJK Helsinki's stadium Bolt Arena since 2011 and as the CEO of HJK Helsinki since 2013. He graduated from the MBA program of University of Liverpool in 2011 and has done some studies in Harvard University and Yale University as well.[1][2]
Riihilahti had a key role in establishment of the UEFA Europa Conference League which started during the 2021-2022 season.[3][4]
Personal life
During his career Riihilahti has written columns for newspapers, such as The Times and the Finnish Iltalehti. He has also been involved in many good charity projects like ’'Icehearts and ’'Peace United.
Apart from his careers in sports and media he has been involved in many high profile political and business committees. Riihilahti divorced 2019 and is a father of two children. Riihilahti married his Tanssii Tähtien kanssa-dance partner, Katri Mäkinen in 2023.
He is the older brother of Finnish TV and sports reporter Riku Riihilahti,[5] and the uncle of professional footballer Daniel Riihilahti, playing in Brann II.
Honours
HJK Helsinki
- Veikkausliiga: 1997, 2009, 2010, 2011
- Finnish Cup: 1996, 1998, 2011
- Finnish League Cup: 1996, 1997, 1998
Crystal Palace
- English First Division play-offs: 2004
References
- ^ "LinkedinIn - Aki Riihilahti". 20 October 2023.
- ^ HS, Tero Hakola (22 March 2014). "Riihilahti vie HJK:ta Harvardin opeilla eurokentille". Helsingin Sanomat (in Finnish). Retrieved 20 October 2023.
- ^ ""Ägä-Cup" – HJK:n eurosarjalle oudon tylyä pilkkaa". www.sportti.com (in Finnish). Retrieved 20 October 2023.
- ^ "Aki Riihilahti on ihminen, joka voisi tappaa itsensä työllä: "Olen hyvä duunissani ja hyvä isä, mutta kaikki muu siltä väliltä on sekavaa"". www.eeva.fi. 5 June 2022. Retrieved 20 October 2023.
- ^ Tiesitkö että nämä suomalaisjulkkikset ovat sukua toisilleen? Lue yllättävät yhteydet!, MTV Oy/ mtvuutiset.fi, 31 March 2011
External links
- Official website
- Aki Riihilahti at Veikkausliiga.com (in Finnish)
- Aki Riihilahti at ESPN FC
- Aki Riihilahti at National-Football-Teams.com