Željko Ćorić was born on September 14, 1964 in Mostar. He is a mechanical engineer by profession. He was an employee of the Soko Factory Mostar, then of the Red Cross Mostar as the head of the AOP Service. He also served as the secretary of the Red Cross Mostar, after which he was the director of the Center for Social Care for the Elderly Mostar. In parallel with these jobs, he was also engaged as a teacher of computer science and mechanical engineering subjects at the High School of Tourism and Hospitality in Mostar, the High School of Construction Juraj Dalmatinac Mostar and the High School of Traffic in Mostar. He served as the president of ALUMNI at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Computing and Electrical Engineering of the University of Mostar, and was the president of the Croatian Football Club Branitelj from Mostar for four terms and a member of several committees in the Cantonal and Federal Football Associations.