Croatia at the FIFA World Cup
Encyclopedia
The Croatia national football team
have appeared in the finals of the FIFA World Cup
on three occasions, in 1998, 2002 and 2006. From 1930 to 1990 Croatia was part of Yugoslavia. For World Cup records and appearances in that period, see Yugoslavia national football team
.
Following Croatia's independence (officially declared in June 1991), the Croatian Football Federation
applied for membership and was admitted to FIFA in July 1992, at too late a date to enter the qualifying tournament for the 1994 FIFA World Cup
, so the first international tournament Croatia entered was the UEFA Euro 1996 and their first World Cup qualification cycle was for the 1998 FIFA World Cup
. Led by Miroslav Blažević
, Croatia started their first ever World Cup campaign with a 4–1 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina
on 8 October 1996. Due to the Bosnian War
, Bosnia and Herzegovina had to host the match outside their country so the game was played at Stadio Renato Dall'Ara
in Bologna
, and the first World Cup qualifying goal for Croatia was scored by Slaven Bilić
in the 12th minute.
Croatia struggled to find form throughout the rest of the campaign, drawing with Greece, Denmark and Slovenia at home in their next three games, before earning their next victory against Greece (1–0, goal by Davor Šuker
). Croatia proceeded to win games against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia and they finished the qualifying as runners-up in Group 1, behind Denmark
, with 15 points after 8 games. This meant that Croatia had qualified for a two-legged playoff in which they were paired with Ukraine
. After winning the first leg 2–0 at Maksimir and then drawing 1–1 in Kiev, Croatia qualified for their first World Cup finals tournament on 15 November 1997.
In the draw for the final tournament, held on 4 December 1997 at Stade Vélodrome
in Marseille
, Croatia was drawn to play in Group H, along with two other teams which qualified for the World Cup for the first time, Jamaica and Japan, and two-time World Cup winners Argentina. In their first match Croatia beat Jamaica 3–1, in a game memorable for Croatia's first ever World Cup goal, an opener scored by Mario Stanić in the 27th minute. Croatia went on to beat Japan 1–0 before losing their third group stage match against Argentina 0–1, in a game which was of little importance as both teams had already qualified for round of 16.
In round of 16, Croatia faced Group G winners Romania (who had finished top of their group in front of England) and won the game through a penalty converted by Davor Šuker in stoppage time of the first half after a foul on Aljoša Asanović by Gabriel Popescu
. After that Croatia faced Germany in the quarter-finals, in a game which was at the time touted by the Croatian media as a great opportunity to get back at Germany as it was them who had knocked out Croatia in the UEFA Euro 1996 quarter-finals two years earlier. In the 40th minute Christian Wörns
received a direct red card and was sent off for fouling Davor Šuker, and Robert Jarni opened the scoring eight minutes later in stoppage time of the first half. Goran Vlaović and Davor Šuker added a second and third and the game ended in a 3–0 win, which is still regarded by fans and the media as one of the most memorable matches Croatia ever played.
Croatia went on to face hosts France in the semi-finals, but lost the game 1–2 when an opener scored by Šuker in the 46th minute was immediately equalised by Lilian Thuram
the following minute. Thuram also scored France's second goal in the 69th minute. Interestingly, these were the only two goals Thuram ever scored for France in an international career spanning from 1994 to 2008 which saw him earn a total of 147 caps. After Croatia's exit manager Blažević was heavily criticized by Croatian press for not sending in Robert Prosinečki soon enough after France took the lead (Prosinečki came on as a substitute for Mario Stanić just minutes before the final whistle). Croatia captain Zvonimir Boban tried to take the blame for the defeat saying that he felt he needed to be substituted but wanted to stay on the pitch just a little while longer (it was his defending mistake which led to Thuram's equaliser).
After being knocked out in the semi-finals, Croatia looked for consolation against Netherlands in the third place match played just three days later at Parc des Princes
. Croatia went on to win 2–1 through goals by Šuker and Prosinečki, but after the final whistle Dražen Ladić was labelled player of the match, for a career-best performance which saw him save numerous shots from Patrick Kluivert
, Clarence Seedorf
and Marc Overmars
.
included the following 22 players in the finals tournament squad. The 16 players who were capped at least once in one of the seven matches Croatia played in France are highlighted in bold. The remaining six players were unused at the tournament (defenders Goran Jurić and Anthony Šerić, defensive midfielder Mamić, striker Ardian Kozniku, and second and third-choice goalkeepers Marijan Mrmić and Vladimir Vasilj). On the other hand, six players appeared in all seven matches: goalkeeper Dražen Ladić, defender Slaven Bilić, midfielders Aljoša Asanović, Mario Stanić, Robert Jarni, and striker Davor Šuker.
Out of 11 goals scored by Croatia at the tournament, six were scored by Davor Šuker, who was awarded the Golden Shoe Award for the top goalscorer of the tournament, as well as the Silver Ball Award as the second most outstanding player of the tournament (behind Ronaldo
of Brazil
). Robert Prosinečki (who was retroactivelly given the 1990 FIFA World Cup
Best Young Player Award, where he had appeared for Yugoslavia), also scored two goals in matches against Jamaica and the Netherlands, which made him the only player in World Cup history to score goals at finals tournaments for two different countries.
For three players (Jarni, Prosinečki and Šuker) this was their second appearance at the World Cup, having been members of Yugoslavia squad at the 1990 FIFA World Cup. Alen Bokšić would have been fourth, having been a key player in Croatia's qualifying campaign, but he was dropped from the tournament squad after sustaining an injury just months before the tournamemnt in France.
By beating Netherlands, Croatia finished third in their World Cup debut, a feat matched only by Eusébio
's Portugal
in the 1966 FIFA World Cup
32 years earlier. Consequently, Croatia reached their highest ever FIFA ranking when they were 3rd in the world for three months between January and March 1999 and were given the Best Mover of the Year Award in 1998, the only team so far which won the award twice (having been Best Movers in 1994). Upon returning to Croatia, the whole squad was decorated by President Franjo Tuđman, and were nicknamed Brončani (The Bronze Ones) and Vatreni (The Fiery Ones) in the media. The latter stuck as a permanent nickname for the national team.
Most players continued playing for the team throughout the UEFA Euro 2000 qualifiers, but after Croatia failed to qualify manager Miroslav Blažević resigned and soon after that some of the players retired from the national team. The next manager Mirko Jozić
kept some of the remaining members of the Bronze Generation and even took them to 2002 FIFA World Cup
(such as Šuker, Prosinečki, Jarni, Stanić, Soldo, Vlaović, Šimić), but they failed to make an impact at the tournament and almost all of them retired soon afterwards, but a number of them later became prominent figures in Croatian football.
Zvonimir Boban went into sports publishing and took over as CEO of Croatia's sports daily Sportske novosti
in 2005 and worked as a commentator for Italian television stations. Davor Šuker launched his line of sports apparel and established a football academy carrying his name. Zvonimir Soldo, Robert Jarni, Slaven Bilić, Igor Štimac and Dražen Ladić all took up managing jobs (Soldo coached Dinamo Zagreb to a Double in 2008, while Jarni, Bilić and Štimac all had managerial spells at Hajduk Split
). Štimac later became chairman of the association of Prva HNL clubs, the body regulating top flight football in Croatia, and Bilić took over as Croatia manager in 2006, hiring Aljoša Asanović, Robert Prosinečki and Marijan Mrmić as his assistants. Dražen Ladić took up managing of Croatia U-21
in 2006, and Krunoslav Jurčić is the current manager at Dinamo Zagreb, having been appointed in 2009. Miroslav Blažević later managed a number of clubs in Croatia, Slovenia and Switzerland before taking over as Bosnia and Herzegovina
manager in 2008 and sensationally leading them to the verge of qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup
.
Croatia national football team
The Croatia national football team represents Croatia in international football. The team is controlled by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body for football in the country, and has been managed since 2006 by former player Slaven Bilić...
have appeared in the finals of the FIFA World Cup
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often simply the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association , the sport's global governing body...
on three occasions, in 1998, 2002 and 2006. From 1930 to 1990 Croatia was part of Yugoslavia. For World Cup records and appearances in that period, see Yugoslavia national football team
Yugoslavia national football team
The Yugoslavia national football team represented the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in association football. It enjoyed a modicum of success in international competition. In 1992, during the Yugoslav wars, the team was suspended from international...
.
Overview
| Year | Round | Position | GP | W | D* | L | GS | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 19941994 FIFA World Cup The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988... |
Did not enter | |||||||
 19981998 FIFA World Cup The 1998 FIFA World Cup, the 16th FIFA World Cup, was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. France was chosen as host nation by FIFA on 2 July 1992. The tournament was won by France, who beat Brazil 3-0 in the final... |
Semi-finals | 3rd | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 5 |
  20022002 FIFA World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0... |
Round 1 | 23rd | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 |
 20062006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six... |
Round 1 | 22nd | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 |
 20102010 FIFA World Cup The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010... |
Did not qualify | |||||||
Qualification
| Rank | Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 17 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 14 | 6 | 8 | |
| 2 | 15 | 8 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 17 | 12 | 5 | |
| 3 | 14 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 4 | 7 | |
| 4 | 9 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 9 | 14 | ||
| 5 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 5 | 20 | ||
Following Croatia's independence (officially declared in June 1991), the Croatian Football Federation
Croatian Football Federation
The Croatian Football Federation is the governing body of association football in Croatia. It was originally formed in 1912 and is based in the capital city of Zagreb. The organisation is a member of both FIFA and UEFA, and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of the game of football in Croatia...
applied for membership and was admitted to FIFA in July 1992, at too late a date to enter the qualifying tournament for the 1994 FIFA World Cup
1994 FIFA World Cup
The 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...
, so the first international tournament Croatia entered was the UEFA Euro 1996 and their first World Cup qualification cycle was for the 1998 FIFA World Cup
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup, the 16th FIFA World Cup, was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. France was chosen as host nation by FIFA on 2 July 1992. The tournament was won by France, who beat Brazil 3-0 in the final...
. Led by Miroslav Blažević
Miroslav Blaževic
Miroslav "Ćiro" Blažević is a Bosnian Croat football manager. He is the current head coach of Mes Kerman in Iran Pro League....
, Croatia started their first ever World Cup campaign with a 4–1 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team
The Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team is the national football team of Bosnia and Herzegovina, governed by the Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
on 8 October 1996. Due to the Bosnian War
Bosnian War
The Bosnian War or the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between April 1992 and December 1995. The war involved several sides...
, Bosnia and Herzegovina had to host the match outside their country so the game was played at Stadio Renato Dall'Ara
Stadio Renato Dall'Ara
Stadio Renato Dall'Ara is a multi-purpose stadium in Bologna, Italy. It is currently used mostly for football matches and the home of Bologna F.C. 1909. The stadium was built in 1927 and holds 38,279...
in Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, and the first World Cup qualifying goal for Croatia was scored by Slaven Bilić
Slaven Bilic
Slaven Bilić is a former Croatian footballer and current head coach of the Croatia national team. His playing tenure predominantly comprised extended vocations in his hometown with Hajduk Split and a combination of foreign spells in Germany and England...
in the 12th minute.
Croatia struggled to find form throughout the rest of the campaign, drawing with Greece, Denmark and Slovenia at home in their next three games, before earning their next victory against Greece (1–0, goal by Davor Šuker
Davor Šuker
Davor Šuker , is a retired Croatian footballer. He played as a striker for a number of European clubs as well as the Croatian national team, where he is the all-time top goal scorer with 45 goals....
). Croatia proceeded to win games against Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia and they finished the qualifying as runners-up in Group 1, behind Denmark
Denmark national football team
The Denmark national football team represents Denmark in association football and is controlled by the Danish Football Association , the governing body for the football clubs which are organized under DBU...
, with 15 points after 8 games. This meant that Croatia had qualified for a two-legged playoff in which they were paired with Ukraine
Ukraine national football team
The Ukraine national football team is the national football team of Ukraine and is controlled by the Football Federation of Ukraine. After Ukrainian Independence and breakaway from the Soviet Union, they played their first match against Hungary on 29 April 1992...
. After winning the first leg 2–0 at Maksimir and then drawing 1–1 in Kiev, Croatia qualified for their first World Cup finals tournament on 15 November 1997.
Playoff
Matches
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 9 | ||
| 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 9 | −6 | 3 | |
| 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | −3 | 0 |
In the draw for the final tournament, held on 4 December 1997 at Stade Vélodrome
Stade Vélodrome
The Stade Vélodrome is a football stadium in Marseille, France. It is home to the Olympique de Marseille football club of Ligue 1, and was a venue in the 1998 FIFA World Cup and the 2007 Rugby World Cup. It is the largest club-football ground in France, with a capacity of 60,031 spectators,...
in Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
, Croatia was drawn to play in Group H, along with two other teams which qualified for the World Cup for the first time, Jamaica and Japan, and two-time World Cup winners Argentina. In their first match Croatia beat Jamaica 3–1, in a game memorable for Croatia's first ever World Cup goal, an opener scored by Mario Stanić in the 27th minute. Croatia went on to beat Japan 1–0 before losing their third group stage match against Argentina 0–1, in a game which was of little importance as both teams had already qualified for round of 16.
In round of 16, Croatia faced Group G winners Romania (who had finished top of their group in front of England) and won the game through a penalty converted by Davor Šuker in stoppage time of the first half after a foul on Aljoša Asanović by Gabriel Popescu
Gabriel Popescu
Gabriel Popescu is a Romanian former footballer.Popescu went on to represent the Romanian national team 21 times and scored four goals, he was also capped 37 times for the U-21 side...
. After that Croatia faced Germany in the quarter-finals, in a game which was at the time touted by the Croatian media as a great opportunity to get back at Germany as it was them who had knocked out Croatia in the UEFA Euro 1996 quarter-finals two years earlier. In the 40th minute Christian Wörns
Christian Wörns
Christian Wörns is a retired German footballer who played as a sweeper. Wörns was widely considered one of the finest German defenders of his generation and one of the best sweepers of his era. He started his career with Waldhof Mannheim but played the majority of his career with Bayer Leverkusen...
received a direct red card and was sent off for fouling Davor Šuker, and Robert Jarni opened the scoring eight minutes later in stoppage time of the first half. Goran Vlaović and Davor Šuker added a second and third and the game ended in a 3–0 win, which is still regarded by fans and the media as one of the most memorable matches Croatia ever played.
Croatia went on to face hosts France in the semi-finals, but lost the game 1–2 when an opener scored by Šuker in the 46th minute was immediately equalised by Lilian Thuram
Lilian Thuram
Lilian Thuram is a retired professional football defender and is the most capped player in the history of the France national team, and one of the twenty most capped players of all time.He played at the top flight in France, Italy and Spain for over 15 seasons, including ten in the Serie A with both...
the following minute. Thuram also scored France's second goal in the 69th minute. Interestingly, these were the only two goals Thuram ever scored for France in an international career spanning from 1994 to 2008 which saw him earn a total of 147 caps. After Croatia's exit manager Blažević was heavily criticized by Croatian press for not sending in Robert Prosinečki soon enough after France took the lead (Prosinečki came on as a substitute for Mario Stanić just minutes before the final whistle). Croatia captain Zvonimir Boban tried to take the blame for the defeat saying that he felt he needed to be substituted but wanted to stay on the pitch just a little while longer (it was his defending mistake which led to Thuram's equaliser).
After being knocked out in the semi-finals, Croatia looked for consolation against Netherlands in the third place match played just three days later at Parc des Princes
Parc des Princes
The Parc des Princes is an all-seater football stadium located in the southwest of Paris, France. The venue, with a seating capacity of 48,712 spectators, has been the home of French football club Paris Saint-Germain since 1974. The current Parc des Princes was inaugurated on 4 June 1972, endowed...
. Croatia went on to win 2–1 through goals by Šuker and Prosinečki, but after the final whistle Dražen Ladić was labelled player of the match, for a career-best performance which saw him save numerous shots from Patrick Kluivert
Patrick Kluivert
Patrick Stephan Kluivert is a former Dutch footballer, currently head coach of the youth side of FC Twente. He played as a striker for AFC Ajax, A.C. Milan, FC Barcelona, Newcastle United, Valencia CF, PSV Eindhoven, and Lille OSC. Kluivert played for the Dutch national team from 1994 to 2004. He...
, Clarence Seedorf
Clarence Seedorf
Clarence Clyde Seedorf OON is a Dutch footballer who currently plays as an attacking midfielder for Serie A club Milan. Seedorf is the first player to have won the Champions League with three different clubs - Ajax in 1995, Real Madrid in 1998 and Milan in 2003 and 2007...
and Marc Overmars
Marc Overmars
Marc Overmars is a retired Dutch footballer. He is best known as a right-footed left winger, although he is able to use both his feet with equal precision and power...
.
Squad
Manager Miroslav BlaževićMiroslav Blaževic
Miroslav "Ćiro" Blažević is a Bosnian Croat football manager. He is the current head coach of Mes Kerman in Iran Pro League....
included the following 22 players in the finals tournament squad. The 16 players who were capped at least once in one of the seven matches Croatia played in France are highlighted in bold. The remaining six players were unused at the tournament (defenders Goran Jurić and Anthony Šerić, defensive midfielder Mamić, striker Ardian Kozniku, and second and third-choice goalkeepers Marijan Mrmić and Vladimir Vasilj). On the other hand, six players appeared in all seven matches: goalkeeper Dražen Ladić, defender Slaven Bilić, midfielders Aljoša Asanović, Mario Stanić, Robert Jarni, and striker Davor Šuker.
Out of 11 goals scored by Croatia at the tournament, six were scored by Davor Šuker, who was awarded the Golden Shoe Award for the top goalscorer of the tournament, as well as the Silver Ball Award as the second most outstanding player of the tournament (behind Ronaldo
Ronaldo
Ronaldo Luís Nazário de Lima , commonly known as Ronaldo, is a retired Brazilian footballer who last played for Corinthians. Ronaldo is widely considered to be the greatest 'pure' striker in the history of the modern game, and by some accounts, in the history of football. Ronaldo was one of the...
of Brazil
Brazil national football team
The Brazil national football team represents Brazil in international men's football and is controlled by the Brazilian Football Confederation , the governing body for football in Brazil. They are a member of the International Federation of Association Football since 1923 and also a member of the...
). Robert Prosinečki (who was retroactivelly given the 1990 FIFA World Cup
1990 FIFA World Cup
The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event twice. Teams representing 116 national football associations from all six populated...
Best Young Player Award, where he had appeared for Yugoslavia), also scored two goals in matches against Jamaica and the Netherlands, which made him the only player in World Cup history to score goals at finals tournaments for two different countries.
For three players (Jarni, Prosinečki and Šuker) this was their second appearance at the World Cup, having been members of Yugoslavia squad at the 1990 FIFA World Cup. Alen Bokšić would have been fourth, having been a key player in Croatia's qualifying campaign, but he was dropped from the tournament squad after sustaining an injury just months before the tournamemnt in France.
- Aljoša AsanovićAljoša AsanovicAljoša Asanović is a retired Croatian soccer player best known from his performances in the mid-to-late 90's when he played for Derby County and for Croatia during Euro 96 and World Cup 98...
- Slaven BilićSlaven BilicSlaven Bilić is a former Croatian footballer and current head coach of the Croatia national team. His playing tenure predominantly comprised extended vocations in his hometown with Hajduk Split and a combination of foreign spells in Germany and England...
- Zvonimir BobanZvonimir BobanZvonimir Boban is a Croatian former football midfielder who played most of his professional career for Serie A club Milan, with whom he won four Serie A titles and the Champions League. He was a member of the Croatia national team which attained third place at the 1998 FIFA World Cup, with Boban...
(c) - Robert JarniRobert JarniRobert Jarni is a retired Croatian footballer who played as left winger or wingback. He is now a manager, but is currently without a club after resigning from his managerial post at Istra 1961 in September 2010....
- Krunoslav JurčićKrunoslav JurcicKrunoslav "Kruno" Jurčić is a retired Croatian professional footballer who is now a coach.-Club career:He started his professional career at Dinamo Zagreb in 1988, before moving to Inker Zaprešić in 1991 and Uljanik Pula in 1993. He went on join Belgian side Beveren in 1995, but returned to Dinamo...
- Goran JurićGoran JuricGoran Jurić is a former Croatian football player.During his career, he played for Velež Mostar, Red Star Belgrade, Celta de Vigo, Croatia Zagreb, Yokohama F. Marinos, and NK Zagreb. He earned 4 caps for the Yugoslavia national football team in 1988, and 16 caps for the Croatia national football team...
- Ardian KoznikuArdian KoznikuArdian Kozniku is a former Croatian footballer who played as a striker. He was born in Kosovo and is of Albanian descent....
- Petar KrpanPetar KrpanPetar Krpan is a retired Croatian footballer who played as a forward.-Club career:Krpan started his career with hometown club NK Osijek, and moved to Sporting Clube de Portugal in 1998, being scarcely used during his one 1/2-season spell...
- Dražen LadićDražen LadicDražen Ladić is a former Croatian football goalkeeper. Between 2006 and 2011 he was the head coach of the Croatian national under-21 team.-Club:...
- Zoran MamićZoran MamicZoran Mamić is a former Croatian footballer and current sporting director for Dinamo Zagreb.He played for Dinamo Zagreb between 1992 and 1996, after which he went on to spend nine years playing for various clubs in Germany. Between 1996 and 1998, he made 45 Bundesliga appearances and scored four...
- Silvio MarićSilvio MarićSilvio Marić is a retired Croatian footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.- Club career :Born in Zagreb, Marić began his professional career at Dinamo Zagreb in 1992. In the autumn of 1998, he appeared for Dinamo Zagreb in all of their six group matches in the UEFA Champions League and...
- Marijan MrmićMarijan MrmicMarijan Mrmić is a retired Croatian football goalkeeper who is now a coach. He is currently the goalkeeping coach for both NK Varaždin and the Croatian national football team.-Club career:...
- Robert ProsinečkiRobert ProsineckiRobert Prosinečki is a Croatian football manager and former football midfielder. Prosinečki is regarded by many as the player with best technique that ever played in and for Croatia. Former national squad teammate Zvonimir Boban, humbly, also agreed with this. His dribbling is considered...
- Zvonimir Soldo
- Mario StanićMario StanicMario Stanić is a former Croatian football midfielder.-Career:He started his career with Željezničar Sarajevo. He was considered to be one of the most talented young players in former Yugoslavia. In 1992, war began and he went to Croatia, where he played for Dinamo Zagreb...
- Anthony ŠerićAnthony ŠericAnthony Šerić , is a Croatian Australian footballer who currently plays as a defender for Karabükspor.-Club career:Šerić was born to a Croatian family in Sydney, Australia and received a football scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport...
- Dario ŠimićDario ŠimicDario Šimić is a retired Croatian football player. Šimić was a versatile defender who played as full-back, sweeper or centre back. A product of Dinamo Zagreb Academy, he later played for Serie A sides Inter Milan and AC Milan and Ligue 1 side Monaco, before returning to Dinamo Zagreb in 2010,...
- Igor ŠtimacIgor ŠtimacIgor Štimac is a retired Croatian football player. He is now a football agent and a manager...
- Davor ŠukerDavor ŠukerDavor Šuker , is a retired Croatian footballer. He played as a striker for a number of European clubs as well as the Croatian national team, where he is the all-time top goal scorer with 45 goals....
- Igor TudorIgor TudorIgor Tudor is a Croatian former football defender. He was considered one of Croatia's best defenders in the period between the late 1990s and mid-2000s....
- Vladimir VasiljVladimir VasiljVladimir Vasilj is a former Croatian football goalkeeper.He was born in Hanover and started his professional career at Croatian club Hrvatski Dragovoljac in the 1995-96 season...
- Goran VlaovićGoran VlaovicGoran Vlaović is a former Croatian football striker.-Club career:Vlaović started his professional career with Osijek in 1989 and moved to Dinamo Zagreb in 1992, before going abroad to play for Calcio Padova in Italy, Valencia in Spain and Panathinaikos in Greece, where he retired in June 2004...
Legacy
| ]]}} |
| Croatia's 3-5-2 lineup in the 1998 World Cup. |
By beating Netherlands, Croatia finished third in their World Cup debut, a feat matched only by Eusébio
Eusébio
Eusébio da Silva Ferreira, GCIH, GCM , commonly known simply as Eusébio, is a retired Mozambican-born Portuguese football forward. He is considered one of the best footballers of all-time by the IFFHS, experts and fans...
's Portugal
Portugal national football team
The Portugal national football team represents Portugal in association football and is controlled by the Portuguese Football Federation, the governing body for football in Portugal. Portugal's home ground is Estádio Nacional in Oeiras, and their head coach is Paulo Bento...
in the 1966 FIFA World Cup
1966 FIFA World Cup
The 1966 FIFA World Cup, the eighth staging of the World Cup, was held in England from 11 July to 30 July. England beat West Germany 4–2 in the final, winning the World Cup for the first time, so becoming the first host to win the tournament since Italy in 1934.-Host selection:England was chosen as...
32 years earlier. Consequently, Croatia reached their highest ever FIFA ranking when they were 3rd in the world for three months between January and March 1999 and were given the Best Mover of the Year Award in 1998, the only team so far which won the award twice (having been Best Movers in 1994). Upon returning to Croatia, the whole squad was decorated by President Franjo Tuđman, and were nicknamed Brončani (The Bronze Ones) and Vatreni (The Fiery Ones) in the media. The latter stuck as a permanent nickname for the national team.
Most players continued playing for the team throughout the UEFA Euro 2000 qualifiers, but after Croatia failed to qualify manager Miroslav Blažević resigned and soon after that some of the players retired from the national team. The next manager Mirko Jozić
Mirko Jozic
Mirko Jozić is a retired Croatian football player and currently an active football manager.As a coach, he won the 1987 FIFA World Youth Championship in Chile, with the Yugoslavia U-20 national team composed of names such as Robert Prosinečki, Zvonimir Boban and Davor Šuker.He coached Chilean club...
kept some of the remaining members of the Bronze Generation and even took them to 2002 FIFA World Cup
2002 FIFA World Cup
The 2002 FIFA World Cup was the 17th staging of the FIFA World Cup, held in South Korea and Japan from 31 May to 30 June. It was also the first World Cup held in Asia, and the last in which the golden goal rule was implemented. Brazil won the tournament for a record fifth time, beating Germany 2–0...
(such as Šuker, Prosinečki, Jarni, Stanić, Soldo, Vlaović, Šimić), but they failed to make an impact at the tournament and almost all of them retired soon afterwards, but a number of them later became prominent figures in Croatian football.
Zvonimir Boban went into sports publishing and took over as CEO of Croatia's sports daily Sportske novosti
Sportske novosti
Sportske novosti is a Croatian daily sports newspaper based in Zagreb.It was first published as a weekly magazine on 9 August 1945 . It changed its name to Narodni sport on 10 December 1945...
in 2005 and worked as a commentator for Italian television stations. Davor Šuker launched his line of sports apparel and established a football academy carrying his name. Zvonimir Soldo, Robert Jarni, Slaven Bilić, Igor Štimac and Dražen Ladić all took up managing jobs (Soldo coached Dinamo Zagreb to a Double in 2008, while Jarni, Bilić and Štimac all had managerial spells at Hajduk Split
HNK Hajduk Split
HNK Hajduk Split, commonly referred to as Hajduk Split or simply Hajduk, is a Croatian football club founded in 1911 and based in the city of Split. The club's home ground since 1979 is the 35,000-seater Poljud Stadium and the team's traditional home colours are white shirts with blue shorts and...
). Štimac later became chairman of the association of Prva HNL clubs, the body regulating top flight football in Croatia, and Bilić took over as Croatia manager in 2006, hiring Aljoša Asanović, Robert Prosinečki and Marijan Mrmić as his assistants. Dražen Ladić took up managing of Croatia U-21
Croatia national under-21 football team
The Croatia national under-21 football team, also known as Croatia under-21 or Croatia U21 is a youth association football national team which represents Croatia at this age level and is a feeder team for the Croatia national football team....
in 2006, and Krunoslav Jurčić is the current manager at Dinamo Zagreb, having been appointed in 2009. Miroslav Blažević later managed a number of clubs in Croatia, Slovenia and Switzerland before taking over as Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team
The Bosnia and Herzegovina national football team is the national football team of Bosnia and Herzegovina, governed by the Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina...
manager in 2008 and sensationally leading them to the verge of qualifying for the 2010 FIFA World Cup
2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for men's national association football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010...
.
Matches
Squad
- Boško BalabanBoško BalabanBoško Balaban is a Croatian footballer who currently plays for Panionios in the Super League Greece as a striker. He is a former member of the Croatia national team.-Early career:...
- Alen BokšićAlen BokšicAlen Bokšić is a former football attacker from Croatia. He was a renowned forward known for his technique.-Career:Bokšić was born in Makarska and started his career in the club Zmaj from Makarska. As a young player he moved to Hajduk Split and was introduced into the first team . With Hajduk, he...
- Tomislav ButinaTomislav ButinaTomislav Butina is a former Croatian footballer who played as goalkeeper for top level clubs Dinamo Zagreb, Club Brugge and Olympiacos. He was also capped 28 times for the Croatia national football team in the period from 2001 to 2006 and was member of Croatian squads at the 2002 and 2006 FIFA...
- Robert JarniRobert JarniRobert Jarni is a retired Croatian footballer who played as left winger or wingback. He is now a manager, but is currently without a club after resigning from his managerial post at Istra 1961 in September 2010....
(c) - Niko KovačNiko KovacNiko Kovač is a former Croatian footballer who last played as a midfielder for Red Bull Salzburg. He was the long-standing captain of Croatia before retiring from international football in January 2009...
- Robert KovačRobert KovacRobert Kovač is a retired Croatian football defender.- Early career :Kovač started his career in lower league clubs Rapide Wedding and Hertha Zehlendorf before making his Bundesliga debut with 1. FC Nuremberg in 1995...
- Ivica OlićIvica OlicIvica Olić is a Croatian professional footballer who plays for Bayern Munich in Germany and internationally for the Croatian national team.- Early career :Olić was born and raised in the village of Davor near Nova Gradiška, Croatia, Yugoslavia...
- Stipe PletikosaStipe PletikosaStipe Pletikosa is a Croatian football goalkeeper who plays for the Russian Premier League club FC Rostov and the Croatian national team, for which he has made 86 appearances.-Hajduk Split:...
- Robert ProsinečkiRobert ProsineckiRobert Prosinečki is a Croatian football manager and former football midfielder. Prosinečki is regarded by many as the player with best technique that ever played in and for Croatia. Former national squad teammate Zvonimir Boban, humbly, also agreed with this. His dribbling is considered...
- Milan RapaićMilan RapaicMilan "Miki" Rapaić was a Croatian football midfielder who last played for HNK Trogir after his contract with Standard Liège ended in July 2007....
- Zvonimir Soldo
- Mario StanićMario StanicMario Stanić is a former Croatian football midfielder.-Career:He started his career with Željezničar Sarajevo. He was considered to be one of the most talented young players in former Yugoslavia. In 1992, war began and he went to Croatia, where he played for Dinamo Zagreb...
- Daniel ŠarićDaniel ŠaricDaniel Šarić is a former Croatian footballer who played as a right winger or wingback. His name is sometimes spelled as Danijel Šarić....
- Anthony ŠerićAnthony ŠericAnthony Šerić , is a Croatian Australian footballer who currently plays as a defender for Karabükspor.-Club career:Šerić was born to a Croatian family in Sydney, Australia and received a football scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport...
- Dario ŠimićDario ŠimicDario Šimić is a retired Croatian football player. Šimić was a versatile defender who played as full-back, sweeper or centre back. A product of Dinamo Zagreb Academy, he later played for Serie A sides Inter Milan and AC Milan and Ligue 1 side Monaco, before returning to Dinamo Zagreb in 2010,...
- Josip ŠimunićJosip ŠimunicJosip Šimunić is a Croatian footballer who plays as a defender for Dinamo Zagreb and the Croatian national team.-Club career:...
- Davor ŠukerDavor ŠukerDavor Šuker , is a retired Croatian footballer. He played as a striker for a number of European clubs as well as the Croatian national team, where he is the all-time top goal scorer with 45 goals....
- Stjepan TomasStjepan TomasStjepan Tomas is a Croatian football defender. He is currently a free agent following his release from Turkish side Bucaspor in November 2010....
- Vladimir VasiljVladimir VasiljVladimir Vasilj is a former Croatian football goalkeeper.He was born in Hanover and started his professional career at Croatian club Hrvatski Dragovoljac in the 1995-96 season...
- Goran VlaovićGoran VlaovicGoran Vlaović is a former Croatian football striker.-Club career:Vlaović started his professional career with Osijek in 1989 and moved to Dinamo Zagreb in 1992, before going abroad to play for Calcio Padova in Italy, Valencia in Spain and Panathinaikos in Greece, where he retired in June 2004...
- Jurica Vranješ
- Davor VugrinecDavor VugrinecDavor Vugrinec is a Croatian footballer who plays for NK Varaždin as a forward.-Early years:...
- Boris ŽivkovićBoris ŽivkovicBoris Živković is a former Croatian football player. He played as a defender and through career he played all defending positions. He played as right and left full back and centre back. At one point of his career he even played as defensive midfielder....
Matches
Squad
- Marko Babić
- Boško BalabanBoško BalabanBoško Balaban is a Croatian footballer who currently plays for Panionios in the Super League Greece as a striker. He is a former member of the Croatia national team.-Early career:...
- Ivan BošnjakIvan BošnjakIvan Bošnjak is a Croatian football player who is currently playing for Chinese club Chongqing Lifan.-Career:Bošnjak started his professional career at local club HNK Cibalia in the 1996–97 season...
- Tomislav ButinaTomislav ButinaTomislav Butina is a former Croatian footballer who played as goalkeeper for top level clubs Dinamo Zagreb, Club Brugge and Olympiacos. He was also capped 28 times for the Croatia national football team in the period from 2001 to 2006 and was member of Croatian squads at the 2002 and 2006 FIFA...
- Joey Didulica
- Ivan KlasnićIvan KlasnicIvan Klasnić is a Croatian footballer who plays for Bolton Wanderers of the Premier League. He is a Croatian international. In 2007, Klasnić underwent a kidney transplant, and became the first player to participate in a major tournament after a transplant.-St. Pauli:Klasnić started his...
- Niko KovačNiko KovacNiko Kovač is a former Croatian footballer who last played as a midfielder for Red Bull Salzburg. He was the long-standing captain of Croatia before retiring from international football in January 2009...
(c) - Robert KovačRobert KovacRobert Kovač is a retired Croatian football defender.- Early career :Kovač started his career in lower league clubs Rapide Wedding and Hertha Zehlendorf before making his Bundesliga debut with 1. FC Nuremberg in 1995...
- Niko KranjčarNiko KranjcarNiko Kranjčar is a Croatian footballer who plays as a midfielder for Tottenham Hotspur and the Croatia national team.He represented two of the biggest clubs in his homeland, playing for Dinamo Zagreb before sparking controversy by making a move to their fierce rivals Hajduk Split in 2005...
- Ivan LekoIvan LekoIvan Leko is a Croatian football player who plays for Belgian Pro League outfit Sporting Lokeren.-Club career:...
- Jerko Leko
- Luka ModrićLuka ModricLuka Modrić is a Croatian footballer who plays for Tottenham Hotspur and for the Croatia national football team.Modrić's childhood coincided with the Croatian War of Independence. After showing promise in hometown club Zadar's youth team, he was signed by Dinamo Zagreb as a teenager in 2002. His...
- Ivica OlićIvica OlicIvica Olić is a Croatian professional footballer who plays for Bayern Munich in Germany and internationally for the Croatian national team.- Early career :Olić was born and raised in the village of Davor near Nova Gradiška, Croatia, Yugoslavia...
- Stipe PletikosaStipe PletikosaStipe Pletikosa is a Croatian football goalkeeper who plays for the Russian Premier League club FC Rostov and the Croatian national team, for which he has made 86 appearances.-Hajduk Split:...
- Dado PršoDado PršoMiladin "Dado" Pršo is a Croatian former professional footballer who played as a striker.Pršo played for seven different teams and made over 300 league appearances as a professional...
- Darijo SrnaDarijo SrnaDarijo Srna is a Croatian footballer who plays for Shakhtar Donetsk as a captain and is also the captain of the Croatian national team.-Club career:Srna's talent was seen by many scouts in Croatia while he was young...
- Anthony ŠerićAnthony ŠericAnthony Šerić , is a Croatian Australian footballer who currently plays as a defender for Karabükspor.-Club career:Šerić was born to a Croatian family in Sydney, Australia and received a football scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport...
- Dario ŠimićDario ŠimicDario Šimić is a retired Croatian football player. Šimić was a versatile defender who played as full-back, sweeper or centre back. A product of Dinamo Zagreb Academy, he later played for Serie A sides Inter Milan and AC Milan and Ligue 1 side Monaco, before returning to Dinamo Zagreb in 2010,...
- Josip ŠimunićJosip ŠimunicJosip Šimunić is a Croatian footballer who plays as a defender for Dinamo Zagreb and the Croatian national team.-Club career:...
- Mario Tokić
- Stjepan TomasStjepan TomasStjepan Tomas is a Croatian football defender. He is currently a free agent following his release from Turkish side Bucaspor in November 2010....
- Igor TudorIgor TudorIgor Tudor is a Croatian former football defender. He was considered one of Croatia's best defenders in the period between the late 1990s and mid-2000s....
- Jurica Vranješ