June 23, 2022 - Croatia beats Germany in the 2nd round of the FINA World Championships in Hungary. 

Croatia and Germany met tonight in the 2nd round of the FINA World Championships played in Debrecen on Thursday night. 

After drawing against Greece, Croatia was hungry to get their first victory against a weaker national team. Recall, in the first round, Croatia and Greece finished 8:8, while Germany lost to Japan.

After the first round, Japan led the standings with two points, Croatia and Greece had one each, and Germany was without points. Greece and Japan play tonight at 19:30. 

A spot in the quarterfinals is won only by the winner of the group, while the second and third-placed teams play in the round of 16. 

Match Report 

1st quarter

Vrlic scored Croatia's first goal in the first 20 seconds of the match. Kharkov scored for 2:0 with 6:00 minutes left on the clock. Germany scored for 2:1 with 3:35 to go in the first quarter. Croatia captain Krapic made with 3:1 with 3:06 left and again for 4:1 with 1:15 on the clock. The first quarter ended 4:1 for Croatia. 

2nd quarter 

Fatovic scored his first goal of the World Champs with 7:00 to go on the clock in the 2nd quarter. It was 5:1 for Croatia. Zuvela scored his first goal of the match for 6:1 and 5:04 left. Fatovic scored for 7:1 with 3:17 left. Kragic scored for 8:1 with 0:58 left until halftime. Germany made it 8:2 with 0:25 left. The second quarter ended 8:2 for Croatia. 

3rd quarter

Germany won the sprint to open the 3rd quarter and scored for 8:3 in the first 30 seconds. Bukic scored for 9:3 with 5:56 left. Basic scored for 10:3 with 4:57 to go. Germany made it 10:4 with 4 minutes on the cock. The third quarter ended 10:4 for Croatia. 

4th quarter 

Croatia won the sprint in the final quarter. Germany scored for 10:5 with 5:55 left in the match and again for 10:6 with 4:02 left. Germany was just 3 goals behind with 3:07 left in the match - 10:7. Basic scored for 11:7 with 2:48 on the clock, but Germany scored again for 11:8 with 2:24 left. Another brilliant strike from Basic gave Croatia some peace in the final two minutes - 12:8. Buric made it 13:8 with just over a minute left. Germany was given a penalty with 0:35 on the clock and scored for 13:9. The match ended 13:9 for Croatia. 

For more, make sure to check out our dedicated sports section. 

August 21, 2021 - The U19 Croatia handball team will play in the final of the European Championship against Germany on Sunday at 5 pm in Varaždin!

A medal has been secured, and Krešo Ivanković's team has the opportunity to become Croatia's second generation with European gold in the cadet category, reports Jutarnji List.

So far, these have been U18 competitions 18, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Euros were not held last year, and as a U19 competition was postponed to this year. Croatia has gold from the U18 European Championship in 2006 and two silver medals, one from 2004 and 2016.

The semifinal between Croatia and Slovenia was a duel of teams that know each other at heart. After all, before the Championship, they played two preparatory matches - one in which Slovenia celebrated, and the other a draw. However, in the most crucial match, Croatia was better.

It was a victory won primarily by Croatia's defense, a victory they controlled from the beginning, although Slovenia was always close. Slovenia, however, could not reach Croatia's advantage, which for most of the match was +3.

With two goals by David Jurišić, Croatia went to +3 for the first time in the 9th minute, and even then, Slovenia had to call a timeout. Then, Ivan Barbić increased the lead to +4 (6:2) in the 13th minute. After that, Croatia had +4 (7:3 and 8:4) on two more occasions, and in the 27th minute, Slovenia came to -1, which is how the first half ended.

Dominik Kuzmanović recorded six saves from 15 shots on goal (40%) in the first 30 minutes, and Denis Strašek had five saves, of which one 7-meter throw taken by Barbić. Lisac and Jurišić, who also played the whole game in defense, had three goals each, but they missed goals from the left outside (Grubišić 1/4 and Hršak 0/1).

The second half started with Kuzmanović's defense, and with two goals by Jurišić, Croatia went to +3 again (12:9) in the 33rd minute. Croatia mostly maintained that advantage until the end. The closest Slovenia managed was -2.

In the last 10 minutes, Croatia received three goals from Patrik Hršak from the left-wing while Slovenia tried to press in the end, but it didn't help. Croatia's David Jurišić scored seven goals from 13 attempts, Barbić scored 6 out of 7, and Lisac 6 out of 9, but the key to victory was the defense.

Croatia played six games in this Championship and has lost only once.

This Croatia squad already has one gold from EYOF two years ago, but now they have the opportunity to receive one from a more important competition.

Croatia will face Germany in the final, which beat Croatia in the last game of the second round.

To follow the latest sports news in Croatia, follow TCN's dedicated page.

To learn more about sport in Croatia, CLICK HERE. 

February 10, 2021 - In game five of the Olympic Qualifiers in Rotterdam, Croatia water polo tops Germany (22:8).

On Thursday evening, Croatia and Germany met for the final group stage match, after which we will learn the pairs of the quarterfinals.

Behind Croatia are four rounds made up of three victories and one defeat at the Olympic Qualifying tournament in Rotterdam thus far. Recall, Croatia won their first match against Romania at 16:6, defeated the Netherlands 25:8, topped France 10:13, and lost to Russia yesterday 13:14.

Croatia v. Germany Recap

Luka Bukic scored the first goal of the match for Croatia (1:0), while Luka Loncar made it 2:1 with 6:14 to go in the first. Maro Jokovic scored for 3:2 a minute and a half later. 

Luka Loncar scored for 4:2 and Josip Vrlic scored for 5:3 which was how the first quarter ended. 

Jokovic and Buslje opened the second quarter with goals for Croatia (7:3), and Vukicevic made it 8:4 with four minutes to go. Loren Fatovic scored for 9:5 with just under two minutes to go. Buslje scored twice to end the second quarter at 11:5. 

Vukicevic opened the third quarter with two goals for 13:5 with 6 minutes to go. Lovre Milos scored for 14:5, and Rino Buric for 15:5. Buslje scored to end the third quarter at 16:6.

Thanks to Vukicevic, Buric, and Bukic, it was 18:6 with just under six minutes to go in the final quarter. Loncar scored for 20:7 shortly after, while Bukic scored two goals for 22:8, which is how the match ended. 

Following the group stage, the quarterfinal stage will commence on Friday, February 19, in which the four best teams from each group will meet.  The pairs will be determined by their positions in the standings (A1 - B4, A2 - B3, A3 - B2, and A4 - B1). 

The four winning teams will play in the semifinals on February 20. The finalists of the qualifying tournament, as well as the national team that wins the match for third place on February 21, will qualify for the Olympic Games in Tokyo, which are scheduled from July 24 to August 8, 2021. 

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

December 15, 2020 - The Croatia women's handball team topped Germany in a decisive match for a spot in their first-ever European Championship semi-final! 

Coach Nenad Šoštarić's side achieved historical placement in the semi-final of the European Championships in Denmark on Tuesday, which also automatically secures them a spot at the World Championships, which will be played in December next year in Spain.

Croatia could advance to the semi-final in three scenarios tonight - with a win, draw, and even defeat, but not by more than one goal. 

Croatia and Germany were equal at the start of the match, with a 4:4 score by the 10th and 8:8 in the 20th. 

Three minutes before the end of the half, Croatia goalkeeper Pijevic was brilliant in goal for 10:10 in the 27th minute. The first half ended at 12:12. 

Croatia led by two goals two minutes into the second half for 14:12 in the 32nd. Pijevic followed with a save in Germany's next attack. 

In the 35th minute, Croatia reached the biggest advantage of the match - 15:12, and up by four in the 37th (16:12)! Croatia was on fire - reaching a 5-goal advantage a minute later! 

In the 44th minute, Croatia led by 6 goals for 19:13. With under 10 minutes to go, Croatia maintained a 5-goal advantage - 22:17 in the 52nd. 

With two minutes to go, Croatia led 22:20, and with one minute - 23:20!

Croatia defended Germany's final attack to end the game 23:20! 

Croatia entered the Euros as the ultimate underdog, and coach Šoštarić had many problems with injuries and the selection of players before they left for Denmark. However, even with a weakened squad, Croatia shocked favorite Hungary in the first round, then the world champions the Netherlands and Serbia in the remaining group stage games.

Croatia opened the second round with a victory against another favorite, Romania, and then suffered their first defeat against a mighty Norway last Saturday. 

Croatia’s best result at the Euros thus far is fifth place in 1994.

To read more about Croatian handball, follow the Federation's official website.

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

January 18, 2020 - The Croatia handball team met Germany in the second game of the second round of the European Championship in Vienna on Saturday. Thanks to an incredible comeback, Croatia topped Germany 25:24 and is one step closer to the semifinal.

At 8:30 pm, Croatia and Germany met for a crucial match of the European Handball Championship in Vienna. After Belarus defeated the Czech Republic and Spain defeated Austria, the calculation was pretty clear: a Croatian victory against Germany would secure the semifinal. 

Recall, Germany had no easy road to the second stage of the competition. In the first round, Germany was convincingly defeated by Spain, and in the last round, they barely celebrated against the Netherlands. But anything could happen on Saturday night - and we're pretty sure it did.

Croatia’s Maric scored the first goal of the game in front of over 6,000 Croatian fans in Vienna for 1:0 in the 2nd minute. Duvnjak increased Croatia’s lead to 2:1 in the 3rd, though Germany equalized seconds later.  Germany took the lead in the 5th minute at 2:3, then 2:4 in the 6th minute.

Mandic scored for 3:4 in the 7th, and Karacic equalized in the 9th minute for 4:4. Horvat missed a 7-meter shot for Croatia in the 11th to keep Germany in the lead at 4:5 -  and Karacic missed one in the 14th minute. The intensity was high.

Cindric scored the equalizer seconds later, though Germany quickly retook the lead for 5:6 in the 15th minute. Germany was up by two goals in the 17th (5:7), and three goals seconds later (5:8).

Cindric scored again for 6:8 in the 19th minute and Stepancic scored for 7:9 in the 20th.

Croatia reduced their deficit to 8:9 thanks to Cindric in the 21st, though with two players up,  Germany was back to +3 in the 24th minute (8:11).

Yet another 7-meter shot was awarded to Croatia, which Horvat missed for his second time.

In the 25th minute, Germany was up by four goals (8:12) - and in the 27th minute, it was +5 (8:13).

Duvnjak scored for 10:13 in the 28th minute. 

In the final minute of the first half, Karacic scored for 11:13, though Germany was given a 7-meter shot, which they scored for +3 at the half (11:14). 

Two Croatia goals to open the second half were disallowed due to fouls, and Germany increased their lead in the 32nd for 11:15. In the 33rd minute, Germany was up by five goals (11:16).

Croatia was awarded a 7-meter shot in the 35th minute, which Duvnjak scored for 12:16. But a minute later, Germany scored a 7-meter shot for 12:17.

Brozovic scored for 13:17 in the 37th, with Karacic reducing the deficit to -3 moments later (14:17).

Stepancic and Mandic were brilliant in the 39th for a score of 16:18 - and Stepancic scored again for 17:19. Karacic scored for 18:20.

Croatia was awarded another 7-meter shot in the 44th minute, which Duvnjak scored again for 19:21.

Stepancic was outstanding for 20:21, and Croatia was well and truly on their way to making a comeback.

Horvat brought Croatia to 21:22, and Mandic scored the equalizer for 22:22 in the 48th minute! 

Croatia and Germany went back and forth for the next few minutes, with shots defended on both sides. 

Germany retook the lead in the 52nd minute thanks to a questionable 7-meter call. The game was 22:23 for Germany.

Karacic scored the equalizing goal for Croatia in the 54th minute for 23:23.

Duvnjak scored a crucial equalizer for 24:24 with three minutes to go. Emotions were high - and the intensity was higher. 

Karacic put Croatia back in the lead in the 58th minute for 25:24 - the arena went wild. 

Germany was unsuccessful in their final attack and the game ended 25:24 for Croatia! Karacic was named the player of the match.

With this win, and as long as Croatia does not lose against Spain and the Czech Repulic, they will play in the semifinal of the competition.

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

January 14, 2020 - The Croatia water polo team opened their European Championship campaign against Germany in Budapest on Tuesday. 

After difficult preparations, the ‘Barakudas’ opened the European Championship against Germany, the national team they last met in the World Cup in Gwangju. 

“It's important to open the tournament properly. We have a solid and strong opponent at the start, Germany is all but a harmless team,” the Croatia coach said in an interview before the game. 

“Germany is a good team and it is certain that we will have to be at our maximum to win,” said Croatia goalkeeper Marko Bijac.

“We know them well, they are unpredictable, as they showed at the World Cup. We must not enter the game relaxed and easy. I expect a physically difficult match,” added Maro Jokovic.

And Croatia made sure they stuck to their word. 

Germany, however, was the first to score thanks to a Maurice Juengling goal. Croatia finally equalized after almost seven minutes when Josip Vrlic scored for 1:1. Marin Restovic brought Germany back into the lead for 2:1, which is how the first quarter ended. 

At the opening of the second quarter, Lovre Milos made it 2:2. Denis Strelezkij returned Germany to the lead, though Andro Buslje scored the equalizer for 3:3. Milos' second goal finally gave Croatia the 3:4 lead and Hrvoje Benic gave Croatia a two-goal advantage (3:5). Ante Vukicevic scored for 4:6 and Luka Bukic for 4:7. 

Thirty seconds into the third quarter, Croatia was up by four (4:8) thanks to Buslje’s second goal. The 'Barakudas' then became unstoppable, and Vukicevic scored for 4:9. Milos scores his third goal of the game for 5:11, while Loren Fatovic increased the lead to +7 (5:12). Fatovic closed the third quarter with another goal and a 5:13 advantage for Croatia.

At the start of the fourth quarter, Luka Loncar increased Croatia’s lead to 5:14, while Fatovic scored again for 6:15, and Bukic scored his third goal of the game for 7:16. Josip Vrlic made it 9:17 with one minute to go.

In the second round on January 16 (8:30 pm), Croatia will play against Montenegro. In the final match of Group A on January 18 (4 pm), Croatia will play against Slovakia.

Source: HRT

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

October 26, 2019 - After the friendly spectacle at Arena Zagreb earlier this week, the handball teams of Croatia and Germany met again, this time in Hanover.

On Saturday, the men’s and women’s teams of Croatia and Germany hit the court of a sold-out TUI Arena, where almost 10,000 spectators came to support their sides in a friendly rematch.

Unlike in Zagreb, the men’s teams played first, precisely at 2:30 pm on Saturday. But not unlike the duel in Zagreb, it was another close battle that saw Croatia lose 24:23. Recall, Croatia lost 25:26 in Zagreb.

Coach Lino Cervar made three changes to the team compared to the Zagreb game. Instead of Zlatko Horvat, Kristijan Beciri and Marin Jelinic, it was Fran Meta, Marin Maric, and Lovro Mihic to travel to Hanover.

Luka Stepancic led Croatia with five goals, while Uwe Gensheimer celebrated his 33rd birthday with six goals for Germany.

"I think we can be pleased with today's game; we missed a seven-meter shot when the time ran out. I think we have shown great strength compared to Zagreb, the defense was much better and we can be pleased with the performance here in front of 12,000 people. I don't think they outplayed us, and we deserved more than defeat. Although Matanovic missed in the end, I have to praise them as well as the younger players. I think we are on the right track, we mean well, we are doing well. We need to be calm so that there are no injuries, to correct our mistakes and make the players in the clubs better prepared,” said coach Lino Cervar after the game. 

Recall, the men’s handball side is preparing for the European Championships, which begins on January 9, 2020, and is played in three countries - Austria, Norway, and Sweden. Croatia is in Group A to be played in Graz, along with Belarus, Montenegro, and Serbia.

The women's teams played in the second event of the day, at 5:30 pm. While the Croatia and Germany drew at Arena Zagreb, in Hanover, it was Germany to win 32:23. 

The most efficient for Croatia was Ivana Dezic with nine goals, while Slavica Schuster and Stela Posavec scored three each. Antje Lauenroth and Alicia Stolle scored six for Germany. 

Moree soon...

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

January 21, 2019 - The Croatia handball team and Germany met for the second game of the World Handball Championship's main round on Monday in Cologne.

On July 4, 1998, Croatia defeated the favorite, Germany, in the World Cup quarterfinal.