Official formation Various unofficial sides delineated the early history of Croatian football as Croatia was
not an independent entity until the late 20th century. Hugo Kinert first managed an unofficial side that played international matches in 1918–19. In 1940,
Jozo Jakopić led the national side representing the
Yugoslav Banovina of Croatia in four friendly matches. Following the 1941
Axis invasion of Yugoslavia,
Germany and
Italy took control of Croatia, forming the
Independent State of Croatia and installing
Rudolf Hitrec as an unofficial manager for two years. The side played 15 friendly matches from its re-activation in
FIFA in 1941 until the
end of World War II. In 1945, Croatia returned to
Yugoslavia as the
People's Republic of Croatia with sides active until 1956. the
FIFA World Cup, and the
UEFA European Championship from 1956 to 1990. Croatia debuted their modern
checkered jersey against the
United States on 17 October 1990,
winning 2–1. Caretaker manager
Dražan Jerković, led the
de facto national side before their formal re-admission into FIFA on 3 July 1992, winning two more friendly games against
Romania in December 1990 and
Slovenia in June 1991.
Stanko Poklepović took over team management and led them on an exhibition tour in their debut against
Australia, before he was succeeded by
Vlatko Marković in April 1993. Croatia gained admission into
UEFA in June 1993, three months after
qualification for the
1994 World Cup started, missing their window to enter the competition. After winning a match against
Ukraine in June 1993, Marković was succeeded by
Miroslav Blažević in March 1994.
Blažević period (1994–1999) After the
independence of Croatia, the newly formed Croatia entered the
FIFA World Rankings in 125th place in March 1994. Blažević launched Croatia's
qualifying campaign for
Euro 1996 with a 2–0 win over
Estonia on 4 September 1994 and a 1–0 away loss to Ukraine on 1 June 1995, their first competitive win and loss. In the Euro 1996
group stage,
Goran Vlaović scored the team's first goal at a tournament, a late strike to win 1–0 against
Turkey. Croatia then beat
reigning champions Denmark 3–0, later losing to
Portugal by the same scoreline. The team advanced to the
knockout stage and were beaten in the
quarter-finals 1–2 by
Germany. Croatia's
qualifying campaign from 1998 to 1999 for
Euro 2000 was unsuccessful as they finished third in their group behind
FR Yugoslavia and the
Republic of Ireland. Both fixtures against Yugoslavia ended in draws which prevented Croatia from qualifying by one point. Croatia began their
qualification campaign for the
1998 World Cup with an aggregate victory against Ukraine in the two-legged
playoff. In the
group stage, Croatia beat both
Jamaica and
Japan, later losing to
Argentina to advance with them to the
knockout stage. A 1–0 victory over Romania moved the Croatians to the
quarter-finals against Germany. Croatia beat the Germans 3–0 with goals from
Robert Jarni, Goran Vlaović and
Davor Šuker, all after
Christian Wörns had been sent off. They advanced to their first
semi-final against hosts
France. After a goalless first-half, Croatia led after
Aljoša Asanović pushed past
Zinedine Zidane to cross a ball downfield to Šuker who scored after a one-on-one with goalkeeper
Fabien Barthez. France's defender
Lilian Thuram equalized quickly after, and scored another goal later in the game to beat Croatia 2–1. In the
third place match, Croatia prevailed against the
Netherlands 2–1 to secure bronze and claim their first World Cup medal. The Croatians' performance during the late-1990s propelled them to rank third place in the
FIFA World Ranking in January 1999. The team of the 1990s was dubbed the "
golden generation" for their contributions to Croatia's ascension in international football.
Jozić, Barić and Kranjčar period (2000–2006) in Portugal Croatia started their
qualifying campaign for the
2002 World Cup with draws against
Belgium and
Scotland prompting Blažević's resignation as head coach in October 2000. His successor,
Mirko Jozić, pushed the team through the rest of qualifiers undefeated. In the
group stage, Croatia narrowly lost to
Mexico before beating
Italy 2–1 and sustaining a 1–0 loss to
Ecuador. The team was eliminated by one point, leading to the resignation of Jozić and succession of
Otto Barić in July 2002, their first manager born outside of
Southeast Europe. During Barić's tenure, most of the remaining players from the "golden generation" squad were gradually replaced by younger players over the course of
qualifying for
Euro 2004. Croatia qualified in a
playoff victory against Slovenia, winning 2–1 on aggregate after
Dado Pršo's decisive late goal in the second leg. The team was eliminated at the
group stage after drawing 0–0 with Switzerland and 2–2 with France, and losing 2–4 to
England. Barić departed after his two-year contract expired in June 2004. Prior to launching the team's
qualification for the
2006 World Cup,
Zlatko Kranjčar succeed in July 2004. Croatia qualified undefeated, finishing top of the group ahead of
Sweden and
Bulgaria. In the
group stage, Croatia lost their opening match against
Brazil and drew 0–0 with Japan after
Darijo Srna missed a first-half
penalty. A 2–2 draw with Australia in which three players were sent off confirmed Croatia's elimination.
Bilić period (2006–2012) at the
2006 World Cup In July 2006, Kranjčar was replaced by
Slaven Bilić, who introduced newer, younger players into the squad and concluded
qualifying undefeated. His first match resulted in a 2–0 victory against
reigning world champions Italy during an international friendly. Croatia lost once to
Macedonia and defeated England twice, resulting in their failure to qualify for the first time since
1984.
Eduardo da Silva, the team's top goalscorer during qualifying, suffered an injury while playing for his club,
Arsenal, leading to a reshuffle in the
finals squad with less experienced players. Croatia finished their play in
Group B undefeated, with a 1–0 win over co-hosts
Austria, a 2–1 victory against Germany, and a 1–0 win over
Poland. The team achieved the maximum group stage points possible (nine) for the first time in
their Euros history.
Niko Kovač and
Dario Šimić served as captains during the group and knockout stages, respectively. Croatia pushed Turkey to a
penalty shoot-out in the
quarter-finals, in which the Turkish side prevailed in an upset where
Luka Modrić,
Mladen Petrić, and
Ivan Rakitić all missed their penalties. Croatia set
multiple Euro records: fewest goals conceded (2), fewest games lost (0), and earliest goal scored. Bilić renewed his contract in April 2008, before the
qualifying campaign for the
2010 World Cup. Croatia won 3–0 against
Kazakhstan, before enduring a 4–1 loss to England at
Stadion Maksimir, their first home loss in 14 years. The team drew 0–0 with Ukraine and beat
Andorra twice, drawing again with Ukraine and beating
Belarus twice. In the final stretch of the qualifiers, England delivered Croatia's then-heaviest loss, a 5–1 scoreline, at
Wembley Stadium. The team had several injuries during qualifying and were ultimately eliminated on points, as Ukraine defeated both England and Andorra to advance in the group. Croatia was a candidate to
co-host Euro 2012 with
Hungary which would have resulted in automatic qualification for both countries; UEFA ultimately selected
Poland and
Ukraine. The Croatians began their
qualifying campaign for
Euro 2012 with a 3–0 win over
Latvia, a goalless draw with
Greece, and a 2–1 win against
Israel. In the
qualifying playoff against Turkey, the team won 3–0 on aggregate. They were
grouped with the Republic of Ireland, Italy and
defending champions Spain, opening with a 3–1 victory over the Irish. Croatia drew with Italy 1–1 in a match marred by
disruptive fans and controversial refereeing from English official
Howard Webb. Spain knocked out the side in a 0–1 loss, which, along with 1–1 rematch with Italy, had Croatia eliminated.
Štimac, Kovač and Čačić period (2012–2017) Succeeding Bilić, former player
Igor Štimac was appointed manager. At the same time, Davor Šuker assumed the presidency of the Croatian Football Federation in 2012 after the death of Vlatko Marković. A year in, Štimac was replaced by former captain Niko Kovač. Kovač led the team to a 2–0 aggregate victory over
Iceland in the
qualifying playoffs for the
2014 World Cup with both goals coming in the home leg in
Zagreb. In the
group stage, Croatia opened their campaign with a 3–1 loss to hosts Brazil. The match garnered media attention for
controversial refereeing from
Yuichi Nishimura which was scrutinized for a number of decisions. In their second match, Croatia won 4–0 against
Cameroon then lost 3–1 to Mexico, finishing third in the group and missing the
knockout stage. During the
qualifying campaign of
Euro 2016, Croatia drew with
Azerbaijan and lost to
Norway, leading to Kovač's replacement with
Ante Čačić. The team broke their record for most goals scored in a match with a friendly 10–0 win over
San Marino in June 2016. They topped the
group stage of that year's Euros, advancing with
defending champions Spain. Croatia prevailed over Turkey 1–0 with a long-range volley goal from Luka Modrić, before drawing 2–2 against the
Czech Republic. In the latter match, Croatia led with goals from
Ivan Perišić and Ivan Rakitić, while opposing Czech striker
Milan Škoda and a last-minute penalty from
Tomáš Necid drew the match. There was severe crowd trouble Croatia then defeated Spain 2–1, confirming the Spaniards' first defeat at a Euro finals match since
2004. The Croatians were tipped as one of the tournament favourites as they entered the
knockout stage with Portugal. The Portuguese prevailed 1–0 with
Ricardo Quaresma's winning goal in the 117th minute after Perišić hit the post with a header in the previous attack. Following the campaign, Darijo Srna announced his retirement and the succession of Modrić as team captain in August 2016.
Dalić period (since 2017) Croatia
qualified for the
2018 World Cup undefeated for their first five matches. Two defeats to Iceland and Turkey, as well as a draw against
Finland, led to a public outcry that ousted manager Čačić. He was replaced by
Zlatko Dalić, who formally qualified the team with a 2–0 win against Ukraine, and a 4–1 win with Greece, on aggregate, during a
playoff round in the first leg in Zagreb. The 2017–18 squad was known as Croatia's second "golden generation", referencing their 1998 counterparts, during the side's
World Cup campaign that year. They topped
their group with a 2–0 victory over
Nigeria, a 3–0 win over Argentina, and a 2–1 win against Iceland – their best-ever group stage performance. During the
knockout stage, they beat Denmark in a penalty shoot-out for the first time after goalkeeper
Danijel Subašić saved three penalties, equalling the record for most penalties saved in a shoot-out. In the
quarter-finals, Croatia drew 2–2 with hosts
Russia, becoming the first team since 1990 to win two consecutive penalty shoot-outs. Playing England in the
semi-finals, Croatia equalized to force their third consecutive extra time, matching the tournament record.
Mario Mandžukić and Perišić scored as Croatia won 2–1 making them the second-smallest country by population (after
Uruguay) and land area (after the
Netherlands) to reach a
World Cup final. In the
final they lost to France 4–2, finishing in second place and securing the silver medal. The match was controversial for its refereeing. The team was welcomed by an estimated half a million people at their homecoming in Zagreb. The team entered the
Nations League's inaugural
2018–19 edition in
League A, along with England and Spain in January 2018. Croatia lost 6–0 away to Spain in their first game, the side's record loss in a match. Croatia drew 0–0 home with England, played behind closed doors due to UEFA sanctions. In a rematch with the Spanish, Croatia won 3–2 with a goal in stoppage time, followed by a 2–1 away defeat to England. Croatia were set to be relegated to
League B until a tournament rule change retained them in
League A, grouping them with Portugal, France and Sweden in the
2020–21 tournament. Croatia lost to France and Portugal, but a victory against Sweden was sufficient to avoid relegation. The team topped
their group for the qualifying campaign of
Euro 2020, with a loss to Hungary, and draws against Azerbaijan and
Wales. The 2020 finals were
delayed to the summer of 2021 due to the
COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, winning only two out of eight games in 2020, Croatia achieved their worst-ever aggregate win-rate. Croatia finished second in
their Euros group, with a 1–0 loss to England, a 1–1 draw with the Czech Republic and a 3–1 win over Scotland. They advanced to the
round of 16, where they lost to Spain 5–3 after extra time. The loss to Spain led to heightened criticism against Dalić and the team by the Croatian public, a faction of whom called for resignations. Dalić refreshed the team roster by introducing younger debutants for the remainder of
World Cup qualifying in 2021. Croatia qualified for the
2022 World Cup with seven wins, two draws and one loss. The team advanced from
group stage after a 0–0 draw with
Morocco, a 4–1 win against
Canada, and finished ahead of Belgium by a single point after drawing 0–0. They won against Japan in a penalty shootout in the
round of 16 where
Dominik Livaković saved three of four Japanese penalties, equalling a record held by
Ricardo and Danijel Subašić. Croatia similarly beat Brazil during the
quarter-finals in an upset victory on penalties, having come from behind to draw 1–1 in the final minutes of extra time. In the
semi-final match, Croatia sustained their heaviest World Cup defeat, 3–0 against Argentina. They prevailed 2–1 over Morocco in the
third place playoff, securing their second bronze medal. The team topped
their group in the
2023 Nations League, knocking out
reigning champions France by winning 1–0 on a penalty – their first-ever win against the French. Croatia beat the Netherlands 4–2 in the semi-finals, advancing to their first
Nations League final, against
Spain. After drawing the Spanish 0–0 in extra time, the team lost the penalty shootout 4–5, finishing the tournament in second place. Croatia finished second in
qualifying for
Euro 2024, being drawn into a "
group of death" with Spain, Italy, and
Albania. After a 3–0 loss to Spain, they drew 2–2 with Albania and 1–1 with Italy. The Italians eliminated Croatia from advancing to the knockout stage, on points, with a 98th minute stoppage-time goal from striker
Mattia Zaccagni. ==Team image==