August 17, 2020 - The Croatian First League first round of the 2020/21 season was held from August 14 to 16, 2020. The opening round saw Dinamo embarrass 2019/20 season runners-up Lokomotiva, while Hajduk started with a win at home. Due to epidemiological reasons, all games were played without spectators. 

Varazdin v. Gorica (1:5)

Varazdin and Gorica opened the 1st round on Friday, August 14, 2020, in  Varazdin. 

Spikic scored the first goal for Gorica in the 39th minute for 0:1 at the half. Djurasek equalized in the 63rd for 1:1. A Mudrinski goal in the 81st put Gorica back in the lead, which was followed by three goals from the 90th minute by Doka, Canadjija, and Mudrinski for a final score of 1:5. 

Varazdin is currently in 9th place with 0 points, while Gorica is in 2nd with 3. 

Rijeka v. Sibenik (2:1)

Rijeka and Sibenik met on Saturday, August 15, 2020,  at Rujevica stadium. 

It was Sibenik to take the lead in the 9th minute thanks to a goal by Bulat - and Rijeka's Yakete didn't equalize until the 84th minute! A 90th-minute goal by Muric ultimately gave Rijeka the win. 

Rijeka is currently in 4th place with 3 points, while Sibenik is in 7th with 0. 

Osijek v. Slaven Belupo (0:0)

Osijek and Belupo met on Saturday, August 15, 2020, at City Garden Stadium.

A double yellow for Skoric has Osijek playing with 10 men from the 30th minute. Neither team was able to score. 

Osijek is currently in 5th place with one point, while Belupo is in 6th with one point. 

Hajduk v. Istra 1961 (2:0)

Hajduk and Istra met at Poljud on Sunday, August 16, 2020. 

While the first half went without goals, it was Dimitrov to put Hajduk in the lead for 1:0 in the 72nd minute. Gyursco increased Hajduk's lead to 2:0 with a goal in the 83rd minute, which was the final result. 

Hajduk is currently in 3rd place with 3 points, while Istra is in 8th with 0. 

Dinamo v. Lokomotiva (6:0)

Dinamo and Lokomotiva closed out the first round on Sunday, August 16, 2020, at Maksimir stadium. 

Two quick goals by Majer in the 6th and 27th minute put Dinamo in the 2:0 lead at the half. Gavranovic increased Dinamo's lead to 3:0 in the 50th minute, while goals by Orsic and Ivanusec in the 78th and 79th minutes made it 5:0. Andric scored the final goal of the match ten minutes later for the 6:0 result. 

Dinamo is currently in first place with 3 points, while Lokomotiva is in last with 0. 

You can see the full HNL table here. 

To read more about sport in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page. 

August 17, 2020 - The latest news from around Croatia’s airports for flights to Croatia with updates for Pula.

Croatian Aviation reports that among the numerous cancellations and reductions of weekly flights to destinations in Croatia, there was some positive news. Ryanair has announced a new line to Pula for next spring.

Namely, the Irish low-cost airline plans to launch a new route between Pula and Vienna in the spring of 2021.

The Pula-Vienna route is currently planned from the first day of the summer flight schedule next year (March 28, 2021), twice a week, every Wednesday and Sunday, until autumn - specifically until the end of October (October 27, 2021).

The A320 aircraft of the partner company Lauda (pictured), which has its base at Vienna Airport, has been announced on the route. The capacity of the aircraft is 180 seats.

There have been no direct commercial flights between Vienna and Pula so far, but Austrian Airlines has previously operated charter flights from several destinations in Austria to Pula Airport.

This is the first announcement of a new line to Pula Airport for next year, but traffic will certainly depend on epidemiological measures in the next summer season.

This summer season, Ryanair connects Pula Airport with three international destinations: London, Berlin and Brussels.

In the first seven months of this year, Pula Airport had a turnover of 23,621 passengers, which is a decrease compared to last year of over 94%.

Recall, last week, TCN reported that British Airways would reduce the number of weekly flights to Zagreb in September this year.

British Airways currently operates daily between London (Heathrow Airport) and Zagreb, on A319 and A320 aircraft. Given the occupancy of the passenger cabin and reduced demand, the company decided to reduce the number of weekly flights on the said route in September this year.

From September 1 on the London - Zagreb route, British Airways aircraft will operate six times a week, every day except Wednesday, while from September 7, there will be five flights per week on the route. Namely, the flight will be additionally canceled on Tuesdays.

Changes are certainly still possible, but unfortunately not in the direction of increasing weekly flights, especially with the fact that the number of patients with COVID-19 in the Republic of Croatia is growing significantly.

Other British Airways routes in Croatia (to Dubrovnik, Split and Pula) have no operational changes so far.

Croatia Airlines currently offers three flights a week on the route Zagreb - London Heathrow throughout September (Monday, Wednesday, Friday), but the flight schedule for next month has not yet been finalized.

Furthermore, Aeroflot has completely canceled the Moscow - Split route, to which it planned to return in August, and there are no announced flights to Dubrovnik or Zagreb.

Before the pandemic, Russian Aeroflot operated daily on the Moscow (Sheremetyevo Airport) - Zagreb route, both in summer and winter.

The line was suspended at the time of the pandemic and has not resumed until now. However, according to the announcements from the airline, there will be no direct flights between the two capitals this year. The company plans to make a significant restructuring after the crisis, and according to current announcements, we can expect a direct air connection between Moscow and Zagreb only in April 2021.

Aeroflot even announced the launch of its seasonal route Moscow - Split in August this year, airline tickets were already on sale, but given the regulations at the state borders, it was to be expected that flights would be canceled, which eventually happened.

The third Aeroflot line in Croatia, the one to Dubrovnik, was withdrawn from sale in March, so Croatia will not have a direct connection with the capital of Russia this year.

In the summer flight schedule, the Croatian national carrier operates on the Zagreb - St. Petersburg line, but that line was also canceled for this year.

Aeroflot's last visit to Croatia was on May 2 this year, when a B777 aircraft landed at Zagreb Airport for the first time, transporting medical equipment from China via Moscow to the Croatian capital.

For the latest travel info, bookmark our main travel info article, which is updated daily. 

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As Index writes on the 15th of August, 2020, the European Commission (EC) proposes that only member states which actually respect European Union law receive money from the EU. The German media publication Die Welt writes that several countries could be left without hundreds of millions of euros in that case, including Croatia.

"Violations of the law and corruption are much more common in the EU than is generally known. And this phenomenon is spreading, regardless of whether the heads of the government belong to conservative, social democratic or liberal parties," writes the conservative newspaper Die Welt, as reported by DW.

"Alarm bells are ringing in Brussels: The European Commission has proposed that future payments from EU funds be linked to compliance with its regulations. This issue will return to the agenda in the autumn. Many countries could run out of hundreds of millions of euros and therefore the chance for something like that to pass aren't big,'' writes the aforementioned German media publication. It cites Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovenia and Croatia as problematic countries.

The Republic of Croatia - a problem with corruption

The popular tourist destination, led by Andrej Plenkovic, has a smart head of its government who is well networked in the conservative European People's Party (EPP). But behind that facade there is a dark side, writes Die Welt.

"Corruption is a huge problem in Croatia and it exists at all political levels," said Robin-Ivan Capar, an expert on Croatia at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR) research centre.

Capar doesn't exclude Croatian courts here either. In the so-called Transparency International Corruption Perceptions Index, Croatia has now dropped down to an unimpressive 63rd place. A new EU report on media diversity makes an utterly disastrous assessment of Croatia: "Journalists are the subject of dirty campaigns, hate messages, death threats, intimidation, police harassment and defamation charges."

The German media publication also states that, according to reports from human rights organisations such as Amnesty International, Croatia partially refuses to receive asylum seekers at its borders without any checks, thus violating European Union law. In addition, it is alleged that the border police are abusing migrants. The Croatian Government has rejected and continues to vehemently reject these ongoing allegations.

Slovenia: Jansa is problematic

Significant policy changes are currently taking place in neighbouring Slovenia, which the European Union's public barely notices, writes the German media. Janez Jansa of the Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS), who was elected prime minister back in March this year and is a friend of Hungarian Prime Minister Orban, is considered to be a fiery nationalist.

"There the are first signs that the independence of the Slovenian judiciary is being called into question. Corruption is also a problem in the judiciary. The courts are partly politicised and don't work in line with the standards we can expect in the EU," said Marko Lovec, a political scientist at the University of Ljubljana.

The EU also complains about the lack of media diversity in Slovenia. According to Lovec, "Hungarian businessmen are currently buying up media in Slovenia."

Jansa's attitude towards freedom of expression is also considered to be disturbed. When he was the leader of the opposition, he slandered two journalists, referring to them prostitutes who had served their time - and the Supreme Court approved that, according to Die Welt.

The European Commission is currently following the case of investigative journalist Blaz Zgaga with concern, who reported (in great detail) on the chaos and corruption during the procurement of respirators and medical masks, and Jansa publicly accused him of lying, the German newspaper states about Slovenia.

For more, follow our politics section.

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Leo Greguric from Zagreb is no ordinary teenager from the Croatian capital. He has his own business in parallel with his education, and he's doing excellently.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Sergej Novosel Vuckovic writes on the 16th of August, 2020, by the time kids hit about fourteen years old, most are at an often complicated crossroads in life. They're the stage of transition, not quite a child and not quite an adult, and they develop their own preferences and play sports, study computers, music, learn new technologies, "hunt" for girls or boys and most of all - they want to build an identity.

Who would have thought of doing something else, and to do it so seriously? Leo Greguric is a remarkable young man who had such ambition and now hehas a company in which he is a “director” with three years of experience, all before even coming of age! Leo Greguric runs 3DGlobe from Zagreb, which deals with 3D pressing.

"While I was still in primary school, I had a great desire to start my own small business and to run it in parallel with my high school education. Before I started the company, I bought a small 3D printer from a then-new American startup via Kickstarter. After a few months of use, I ran out of filament (plastic) and wanted to buy more. The closest representative for that was in Poland, so the idea for representation in Croatia came to me. It was a trigger and the whole idea of ​​what I wanted to do suddenly formed in my head,'' the innovative Leo Greguric explained.

Noting that, of course, he shares other interests with his peers, moreover, skiing in winter and windsurfing in summer, but he added a little more to that list. In the beginning, only a few of his closest friends knew about the company, and over time more and more of them came to find out about it: "Some of them showed more interest, so I told them in more detail." His professors, however, still weren't aware of the business venture.

''I never told them about the company. I remember in 1st grade I gave a presentation on 3D printing in a computer science class, and the teacher praised me and then I said that in my free time I do 3D printing, and she gave me some really nice words of support. I didn’t say own a company, it was still early days back then and I didn’t have the courage to say something like that. Maybe I should have,'' Leo said honestly.

Since he couldn't register the company himself as a minor, his father helped him, enabling his son's business to be formally run through his company GWT, which deals with development and investments in new buildings in Zagreb. But despite the fact that his father got the ball rolling legally, Leo remains the boss at 3DGlobe.

''I'm the founder and CEO. In principle, I do everything myself, and my dad helps me out if something isn't clear to me about the paperwork, and he also supervises the issuance of invoices; I will turn 18 in November and I don't have a plan to form my own company yet,'' said the young man, who fell in love with this sort of technology while reading Bug magazine.

''I came across 3D printing while spending some time googling about novelties on the tech scene. I immediately became very interested in it,'' he noted, while when asked what trends prevail in technology today, he modestly replied:

"I'm not a big expert on that. I focus on 3D print technologies, and the trend is the rapid development of technologies and reducing the price of 3D printers with a parallel increase in print quality. As for technologies that aren't to do with 3D printing, I think that augmented reality, as well as artificial intelligence (AI) and software in general, especially solutions for companies, are a lucrative business in Croatia,'' said Leo Greguric.

Regarding the activities of the company 3DGlobe, Leo says that the printing equipment in three dimensions includes 3D printers, materials for 3D printing, as well as some spare parts and various accessories. He currently sells two different types of 3D printers, as well as suitable materials. In addition to sales, the company also offers 3D printing services for others.

''We started out with the 3D printing service later. We do everything, and our clients are diverse. Individuals will order some items in small quantities that they need or want, but can't buy. For example, figurines, but also some buckles modelled on the original that broke and can't be easily bought. Legal entities that have so far ordered from us, for example, include architectural offices and dental offices. For the architects, we printed a larger quantity of house models, and helped the dentists in making tooth models. If I had to single out something unusual, then it's the order of a custom propeller for a drone,'' Leo Greguric recalled.

Leo has every right to be more than satisfied with his business. “From the beginning, my dream has been to secure sales every month. That goal has been achieved so I'm now focusing on growing those sales. Revenues have been present every month for the last year and a half, and there's a profit. These are nice numbers that provide me with some solid "pocket money". Formally speaking, I'm the only one who works in the company, but my cousin Ian helps me,'' said the young technology entrepreneur who wants to enroll in the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing (FER).

"If that doesn't go according to plan, then I'll consider options like FSB (Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture), and maybe something else," Leo Greguric said.

Leo was asked whether or not he thinks that the STEM field is sufficiently represented in the Croatian education system, to which he responded:

"The other day I saw a post on social media in the form of statistics that say that Croatia is among the leading countries in Europe in terms of introducing STEM in education and the results of young people in competitions. Accordingly, I'd say that STEM is sufficiently represented. We can always do more and better, but we're on the right track,'' said the young man, whose role model in running the company and the overall organisation is his father.

''I can see first hand and learn every day what it looks like to run a successful private company that he started all on his own. Regarding the development of technology in Croatia, Mate Rimac is the obvious answer. He's an inspiration to me because he has proven that in Croatia it's possible to develop and work around high-tech products, but it's equally inspiring that he creates great jobs in Croatia and is a respected employer,'' concluded Leo Greguric.

For more, follow Made in Croatia.

As much as 20 percent of Croatia's GDP is made up by tourism as one of the country's strongest economic branches. Given the fact that Croatia is a destination to which many European tourists drive (with the exception of the UK and Ireland, the nationals of which tend to use air transport), Croatian motorways are usually packed at this time of year with license plates from across the continent visible across the country. Owing to the coronavirus pandemic, those same Croatian motorways have experienced expected losses.

As Poslovni Dnevnik writes on the 16th of August, 2020, Ivan Ribicic, the director of the toll collection sector at HAC, told Dnevnik N1 what the situation currently looks like on Croatian motorways, which is a state-owned company.

"HAC is operating with a deficit of 30 percent, which is 540 million kuna," stated Ivan Ribicic, but the opening of the tourist season has indeed improved revenue when compared to the way things stood earlier on in the year, he stressed. Given the fact that the ''lockdown month'' for Croatia took place back in April and that Croatia has experienced more toursim than the previously dire predictions suggested, this is logical.

"HAC is in its restructuring phase, we were well on our way to getting better. The crisis caught up with us, but thanks to banks and to our creditors, we managed to get our hands on some stand-by arrangements, so we do have room to breathe and we'll invest the money for the future. If revenues remain at this level, then we will survive,'' the Croatian motorways director explained.

Some workers at HAC have been retiring, taking severance pay along with the move, and that's how they're dealing with unfortunate redundancies, he says.

"It's good that people are using ENC devices more and more, and the campaign is contributing to that. We organised and monitored the hourly loads at Croatia's toll stations, ans so we were able to organise ourselves accordingly,'' said Ribicic.

For more on Croatian motorways and travel in the coronavirus age, follow our dedicated section.

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As Morski writes on the 16th of August, 2020, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic is pleased with how tourism is going given the less than favourable situation we've found ourselves in as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

''We can be very pleased with how the entire tourist season has been going,'' said Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic, who was in Trsat recently for a celebration.

He pointed out that most of the tourism workers who worked on analysing the predictions and projections for the season had no idea that it would be this good. The results have been above all expectations and that was our key interest, reports HRT.

"That means we did a good job of dancing the dance of closure, as well as opening up in time and taking action," Andrej Plenkovic said.

He said that the increased number of people who have become infected with the new coronavirus in the past few weeks was expected given the large number of people staying in Croatia currently. He emphasised that the message to young people all the time was to adhere to all of the epidemiological measures, but that "all this usually happens when the brakes loosen up a little".

Commenting on the announcement of the introduction of measures for Croatia from Slovenia and Austria, he said that on Friday he was in contact with the prime ministers of those countries who are also monitoring their statistics, the number of people who came home from being on holiday and that they are most afraid of the infection beginning to spread through schools as kids return to the classroom.

He assessed that Croatia opened up in time.

''We've done a good job in regard to tourism and I believe that there will be many more arrivals,'' he said.

''Don't forget what the predictions were, I said that we played a great game in the first half, as far as coronavirus is concerned. Back then, the disease was much more deadly. It wasn’t that long ago, we can remember the pictures from Italy. Most of the infected people who brought the virus to us came from Italy and Austria. It was a much more serious situation then than it is now. Croatia defeated coronavirus in the first half, and as far as preparations for the autumn are concerned, everyone should be very vigilant,'' he said.

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ZAGREB, Aug 16, 2020 - The government of Israel on Sunday decided to abolish the obligatory 14-day quarantine for arrivals from Croatia and 19 more countries, according to the information published on the government's website.

The 20 countries that are now added to the green list are 15 European states including Austria, Bulgaria, Italy, Germany, Hungary, and Slovenia apart from Croatia. The abolishment also refers to arrivals from Canada and New Zealand.

Although infection with coronavirus remains relatively high in Israel, four countries now accept Israeli tourists: Croatia, Bulgaria, Montenegro and four regions of Greece (Athens, Thessaloniki, Corfu, and Crete). In the said Greek regions, the weekly quota for Israeli holidaymakers is 600.

However, travellers leaving Israel for these countries will have to be tested for coronavirus before departure at Ben Gurion International Airport.

Israel with a nine-million-strong population has to date reported 92,000 cases of the infection with COVID-19 and 679 deaths due to the complications from the infection. According to the University of John Hopkins, this is a high incidence rate, however, the mortality rate is low.

August 16, 2020 - The world's most-famous contemporary Sevdalinka outfit, Mostar Sevdah Reunion, hold their first concert of the year in Croatia, as part of the 66th Split Summer Festival

The emotion-wracked melodies of the traditional Sevdalinka (or Sevdah) folk music have rung out across Bosnia for over 500 years. But, for the most famous contemporary band playing this style, the music fell silent on New Year's Eve.

That was the final performance by Mostar Sevdah Reunion, whose return to the live circuit has been halted by COVID-19. But, tonight (Sunday 16 August), at 9pm, they return to the stage.

The band will play a concert at 9pm in Sustipan in Split, the peninsula which lies south-west of the harbour, as part of the 66th Split Summer Festival. There, the emotionally-charged sounds of sevdah, sometimes described as the blues or soul music of the Balkans, will once again be set free.

The Balkan region has the richest and most unique range of folk musics in the whole of Europe; nowhere other than here can you hear styles, scales and rhythms from the near and far east infiltrate into European folk music styles. This melting pot of styles grants the region an exciting and diverse range of authentic folk musics, years ahead, in terms of progression and ambition, to other European styles (indeed, there's a reasonable argument to be made that jazz music emanates from Bulgaria and not America). Sevdah is arguably the most emotive of all the traditional folk musics from the area which encompasses the former Yugoslavia. It has fans across the whole region.


Mostar Sevdah Reunion

Emerging with their debut album in 1999, Mostar Sevdah Reunion have done more than any other contemporary band to place sevdah music on the world stage. They have recorded with true giants of sevdah and Roma music, such as Esma Redzepova, Šaban Bajramović and Ljiljana Buttler. In concert, they have appeared at Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Barbican Center in London, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Konzerthaus in Vienna, the Kremlin State Theater in Moscow, the Art Palace in Budapest, the North Sea Jazz Festival, the Nice Jazz Festival and WOMAD Festival. Mostar Sevdah Reunion have had several documentaries made about them.

The word sevdah comes from the Turkish word sevda which, in turn, derives from the Arabic sawda, a word often associated with a pining heart or unrequited love. Alongside the sevdah music they take their name and inspiration from, over the band's 25+ year career Mostar Sevdah Reunion have become famous for mixing jazz and even Latin styles into their music. In recent years have opened their repertoire to include a classic catalogue of Romani songs.