December 9, 2021 - Great news for Croatia football fans worldwide as Zlatko Dalić will extend his Croatia contract until 2024. 

The Croatian Football Federation president Marijan Kustić and the Croatian A national team coach Zlatko Dalić agreed to extend their cooperation, and the 2018 World Cup finalist coach signed a new contract that binds him to the UEFA European Championship in 2024, announced HNS.

Zlatko Dalić took over the Croatian national team in October 2017 and managed to bring them to the FIFA World Cup in Russia through a complicated playoff round. As a result, Dalić led Croatia to the World Cup final, i.e., the silver medal that inscribed that generation in the history of Croatian football.

Dalić then successfully qualified for EURO 2020. Croatia advanced to the second round of the competition. He then became the first Croatia coach to qualify for three major competitions, winning first place in Group H in qualifying for the World Cup in Qatar. Between those qualifiers, Dalić and Croatia twice managed to stay in the Nations League elite group. 

At the Croatian Football Federation headquarters, President Kustić agreed to continue cooperation with the most successful coach in the history of Croatian football.

"I thank President Kustić and the leadership of the Federation for this expression of trust. I have pointed out many times that there is no more tremendous honor for me than leading the Croatia national team. Although considerable responsibility and pressure come with this job, leading your national team is the most incredible privilege a coach can have. That is why I did not hesitate when the HNS proposed I continue cooperation. The past few months have convinced me that we are on the right path; I feel great energy and ambition to continue to work great results with this refreshed Croatia and thus make our people happy.

Furthermore, I am convinced of our success in qualifying for EURO 2024. Considering that the host is Germany, I believe that we will have an unforgettable atmosphere and the support of our fans. That image is an incredible motive for my further work," said coach Dalić.

"Of course, Zlatko should have unlimited credit with all of us based on the silver medal in Russia, but everything he did with the national team after that silver shows that he is the ideal man to lead Croatia. He achieved all the goals, won groups to qualify for big competitions, and at the same time he was highly successful in the demanding change of generations, so today we again have a team with excellent prospects. Zlatko is a man who unites, who promotes togetherness, puts his whole self into this work and for us, it was only logical to extend this successful collaboration. Thank you to him for accepting our proposal and making it easy to agree on everything. The Federation will, as before, give full support to the coach and the national team.

We are looking forward to new challenges and new successes," said the HNS president Marijan Kustić.

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

December 6, 2021 - The Croatian Cup semifinal draw was held at the Croatian Football Federation headquarters on Monday. 

In the Croatian Football Cup semifinals, Rijeka will play against Osijek at Rujevica Stadium and Hajduk will face Gorica at Poljud, according to the draw held on Monday in Zagreb.

The semifinal matches will be played on March 1 and 2, 2022. There were no top seeds in the draw and the semifinals will be played in one match.

The Cup final will be played on May 22 next year at Poljud Stadium in Split.

This is a great opportunity for Hajduk, which has played 19 consecutive Cup games away. Hajduk last won the Cup in 2013, which is also the last trophy for the Split club. Hajduk has the chance to play two home games in the Cup and a historic opportunity for their first trophy in eight years. The last time Split hosted the Cup was in March 2016 in the semifinal match against Dinamo.

The Rijeka and Osijek match will certainly be a bit more competitive, though Rijeka will have the home pitch advantage. 

Split will be the seventh different host of the final match for the Croatian Cup since the decision was made in 2016 that only one match will decide the winner of this trophy. The hosts of the previous six finals were Osijek, Varaždin, Vinkovci, Pula, Šibenik, and Velika Gorica.

Recall, in the quarterfinal matches which were played on Tuesday and Wednesday last week, Gorica topped Istra on penalties, Hajduk beat Lokomotiva 6:3, and Osijek beat Belupo on penalties. In the last quarterfinal, Rijeka knocked out Dinamo 3:1, which forced the resignation of Dinamo coach Damir Krznar. 

The sports betting company SuperSport became the title sponsor of the Croatian Football Cup this year. The most massive football competition thus bears the name SuperSport Croatian Football Cup for the 2021/22 season.

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

December 2, 2021 - After the SuperSport Croatian Football Cup quarterfinal matches came to a close on Wednesday, the Executive Board of the Croatian Football Federation decided that the Croatian Cup final match would be played in Split, namely at Poljud Stadium.

This season, the SuperSport Croatian Football Cup final will be played at Poljud Stadium, which is comforting news for Hajduk fans after the Split club advanced to the semifinals with a victory against Lokomotiva Tuesday. The Croatian Football Federation decided on Poljud after choosing between Karlovac, Koprivnica, and Split, reports HNS.

At the suggestion of the HNS Competition Commission, the Executive Board of the Federation decided that the final of the SuperSport Croatian Football Cup will be played at the Poljud Stadium in Split and that the final match will be played on May 26, 2022. It will be the first Croatian Cup final at Poljud played in a single game.

On Monday at 11 am, the draw will decide which pairs are in the semifinals. Gorica, Hajduk, Osijek, and Rijeka remain in the competition, and the matches are scheduled for March 2022. 

After the draw at noon, Hajduk president Lukša Jakobušić will meet with HNS president Marijan Kustić at the federation's headquarters on Vukovarska, a year after meeting with his predecessor Davor Šuker, when he said he would "leave the federation alone," reports 24 Sata. 

Since 2016, when the Croatian Cup changed the format and one final match was introduced, the Cup final has been hosted by Osijek, Varaždin, Vinkovci, Pula, Šibenik, and Velika Gorica.

Recall, in the quarterfinal matches which were played on Tuesday and Wednesday this week, Gorica topped Istra on penalties, Hajduk beat Lokomotiva 6:3, and Osijek beat Belupo on penalties. In the last quarterfinal, Rijeka knocked out Dinamo 3:1, which forced the resignation of Dinamo coach Damir Krznar. 

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

November 29, 2021 - As a way to get into the holiday spirit and thank their most loyal fans, the Croatian Football Federation Advent has been announced with gifts for all ages this year. 

Advent has just begun, and the Croatian Football Federation, in cooperation with their commercial partners, is organizing an Advent giveaway for all loyal Croatia fans and social media followers, where you can win sports equipment, national team jerseys, gift cards, overnight stays in luxury hotels, plane tickets, match tickets and more, reports HNS.

What is it all about?

This Advent season, the Croatian Football Federation has organized 27 Advent competitions for the 27 days of Advent, which will be held through the official Croatian Football Federation Instagram account (@hns_cff) to thank the fans for their support in 2021.

Advent competitions will be held until December 24 with valuable gifts from their commercial partners Nike, Football Mania, Croatia Airlines, Zagrebačka pivovara, Hrvatski Telekom, Konzum, Hyundai Hrvatska, Zagreb Tourist Board, Čipi Čips, Heraldija, Puđa, PBZ, PIK Vrbovec, and others.

The rules for the Advent competitions will be published every day of Advent at 10 am on the official HNS Instagram profile. Each prize competition will end with the selection and announcement of the winners on Instagram by 11:59 pm the next day.

Participating in all Advent contests is free. All-natural persons who use Instagram and are older than 13 can participate, except those Advent contests whose prizes include products intended exclusively for adults, which will be further emphasized in the relevant posts.

Potential winners under the age of 18 must provide written consent from their parents or guardians. In addition, the parent or guardian confirms that they agree to provide personal information and the address of the Advent winner to receive the prize.

Advent contests will also be open to international participants, except for those Advent contests whose prizes cannot be submitted outside the Republic of Croatia, which will be available only to participants residing in the Republic of Croatia and will be further emphasized.

One person cannot win more than one prize during all Advent competitions. Participants are free to participate in several Advent competitions and/or content sharing to participate in each Advent competition several times, but they cannot be awarded more than once.

"Enjoy Advent, take part in our sweepstakes, and win valuable gifts for yourself and your loved ones to put under the Christmas tree!" concludes HNS. 

You can find the rules and general conditions of the HNS Advent competitions here.

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

November 19, 2021 - Good news today as Croatia has moved up 3 spots in the latest FIFA ranking, and the Vatreni is now the 15th national team in the world. 

The Croatia national football team has advanced by three spots in the updated International Football Association (FIFA) ranking for November and is now the 15th national team in the world!

In the last qualifying round for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Croatia beat Malta (7:1) and Russia (1:0) and earned enough points to overtake Colombia, Uruguay, and Sweden in the ranking. 

Belgium, Brazil, and France remain at the top, while Italy, which is now sixth, dropped two places.

Among the ten top teams in the world, England and Argentina moved up one place each and are now the 4th and 5th national teams in the world, respectively. Spain and Portugal retained their positions, while Denmark and the Netherlands advanced, finishing in the top ten.

Based on the calculation of November's FIFA rankings, Croatia would be placed in the second strongest group in the 2022 World Cup draw. 

Interestingly, Iran, led by Croatian coach Dragan Skočić, jumped to 21st place and is now two places ahead of Serbia. Since taking over the national team of Iran in February 2020, Skočić has remained undefeated. 

FIFA ranking:

1. (1.) Belgium 1828 points

2. (2.) Brazil 1826
3. (3.) France 1786
4. (5.) England 1756
5. (6.) Argentina 1751
6. (4.) Italy 1741
7. (7.) Spain 1705
8. (8.) Portugal 1660
9. (10.) Denmark 1655
10. (11.) The Netherlands 1654
...
15. (18.) CROATIA 1620

Source: Gol.hr and HNS

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

October 22, 2021 - Tickets for the decisive Croatia-Russia World Cup qualifier at Poljud will go on sale on Monday!

The Croatian Football Federation has announced that the online ticket sales for the final 2022 World Cup qualifier against Russia will start on Monday at 1 pm.

The Croatia-Russia match is scheduled for Sunday, November 14 at Poljud, starting at 3 pm, and tickets will be sold through the HNS ticket portal at the following prices:

West middle - 200 kuna, West - 150 kuna, East Middle 120 kuna, East - 100 kuna, North / South - 80 kuna.

On the day of the match, tickets will be sold at the following prices:

West middle - 250 kuna, West - 200 kuna, East middle - 150 kuna, East - 120 kuna, North / South - 100 kuna.

The Croatian Football Federation emphasized that all persons coming to the stadium must have an EU digital COVID certificate, i.e., that vaccination certificates or recovery certificates will not be recognized, as well as various test results, but only an EU digital COVID certificate with a valid QR code that will be checked at the entrance.

HNS will also provide rapid antigen testing points, after which everyone who tests negative will receive an EU digital COVID passport necessary to enter the stadium. The price, location, and opening hours of the testing point will be announced at a later date.

Ticket sales include e-tickets that the customer must download and print, and only citizens of the Republic of Croatia have the right to purchase, regardless of residence address, by filling in the required personal information.

Due to special epidemiological measures in the stands, one person can buy up to four (4) tickets. In addition to their data, the customer also enters data on the other ticket holders, where they do not necessarily have to be a citizen of the Republic of Croatia.

Tickets will be available at the ticket portal, where you can find detailed information on ticket sales and payment methods.

HNS warns fans that guards will check the accuracy of personal data on the tickets when entering the stadium. Fans who try to enter the stadium with a ticket under another name will be denied entry. Therefore, HNS urges fans not to buy tickets on the "black market" or from scalpers.

The Croatia-Russia match will decide the winner of the Group H World Cup qualifying group, i.e., the team that will secure a direct place in Qatar, while the second-placed team will advance to additional qualifications. Two rounds before the end, Russia leads the group with 19 points and in second is Croatia with 17 points. Before the decisive clash at Poljud, Russia will host Cyprus, while Croatia will host Malta. Both Russia and Croatia are expected to win their penultimate matches. 

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

To learn more about sport in Croatia, CLICK HERE.

October 16,  2021 - The Croatian Football Cup round of 16 begins later this month with the 16 remaining teams in the competition. 

The Croatian Football Cup is the largest football competition in Croatia, which will soon begin with the round of 16 matches, reports Gol.hr. 

In this phase of the competition, there is no classic draw, but the pairs are determined in such a way that the lower-ranked clubs, according to the cup coefficient, host the stronger ones according to the principle that the weakest host is the strongest (32-1, 31-2, 30- 3, 29-4, 28-5).

The entire SuperSport Croatian Football Cup is played in one game, with a classic draw for the quarterfinals and semifinals, without any winners.

Round of 32

September 14

Nehaj - Gorica 3:7

September 15

Bednja Beletinec - Osijek 0:3

September 21

Pitomaca - Rijeka 0:7
Dugopolje - Lokomotiva 8:9 (after penalties)
Primorac Biograd na Moru - Hajduk 1:2
Vuteks Sloga - Istra 1961 0:3
Mladost Zdralovi - Inter Zapresic 3:1

September 22

Orient 1919 - Dinamo 1:4
Karlovac 1919 - Slaven Belupo 0:2
Međimurje - Šibenik 0:1
Rudar Labin - Split 2:0
Belisce - Jaska Vinogradar Jastrebarsko 4:0
Bjelovar - Rudeš 1:5
Sesvete - Varaždin 2: 3 (after extra time)
BSK Bijelo Brdo - Cibalia 1:0
Zagreb - Oriolik 0:1

Round of 16

October 26

13:00 Rudeš - Osijek
15:00 Belišće - Hajduk
17:30 Sibenik - Slaven Belupo

October 27

15:00 BSK Bijelo Brdo - Dinamo
15:00 Rudar Labin - Istria 1961
15:00 Gorica - Mladost Ždralovi
17:30 Varaždin - Lokomotiva

November 13

14:00 Oriolik Oriovac - Rijeka

The Croatian Cup quarterfinals will be played on December 1, the semifinals on March 2, 2022, and the final on May 26, 2022. 

SuperSport became the title sponsor of the Croatian Football Cup back in September, reports HNS.

The signing ceremony, held at the DoubleTree by Hilton hotel, was attended by the president of the Croatian Football Federation, Marijan Kustić, executive director of HNS Tomislav Svetina, members of the management board of SuperSport betting Goran Đurić and Radim Haluza, and president of VOX-football and editor-in-chief of HNTV and Ivan Blažičko. In addition to the title sponsorship of the competition, SuperSport will directly financially assist the host clubs in the round of 16 phase of the Cup.

"We thank SuperSport for recognizing the sporting and market value of the Croatian Football Cup. We are pleased that we will have even greater visibility of the competition across the country through television broadcasts and that through this partnership, we will directly help host clubs in organizing the match," said HNS president Marijan Kustić.

"The Croatian Football Cup deserves a title sponsor, and that is why we are looking forward to this cooperation with SuperSport. This is an important step in further commercializing the competition under the auspices of HNS, which confirms the exceptional popularity and potential of Croatian football," said Tomislav Svetina.

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

To learn more about sport in Croatia, CLICK HERE.

October 1, 2021 - The Croatian Football Federation has suspended referee Ivan Bebek after an audio recording was released earlier this week in which he insulted Hajduk fans and Split journalist Blaž Duplančić.

The disciplinary commission of the Croatian Football Federation held a session today to discuss referee Ivan Bebek and the audio recording that was published in the media this week, HNS reported on its official website.

After the recording was published, HNS President Marijan Kustić reported referee Ivan Bebek to the Disciplinary Commission, which at today's session decided to initiate disciplinary proceedings and suspended Bebek until a decision was made on a possible sentence.

The Disciplinary Commission requested a statement from Ivan Bebek on this case and will decide at a new session next week.

After the 10th round HNL match between Hajduk and Lokomotiva, which was refereed at Poljud, Bebek insulted Hajduk fans and Split journalist Blaž Duplančić in a private conversation. This all resulted from a controversial moment in the 9th minute of the match when there was contact between Livaja and De Haas.

Namely, Bebek had numerous conversations with players and coaches with the desire to show his authority and missed a blatant penalty for Hajduk. De Haas tripped Marko Livaja in the penalty area, though Bebek did not even consult VAR, which provoked a fierce protest from Livaja, who eventually earned a yellow card. 

"The tripping is not intentional or of great intensity, but the criterion of the probable situation is the one for which it was a penalty kick. The Lokomotiva player disrupted the opponent's coordination and movement," said Croatian referee expert Mario Strahonja.

Hajduk immediately requested a statement from HNS, and HNS hastily opened an investigation and forwarded the entire case to the Disciplinary Commission for urgent resolution.

Bebek refereed the Europa League match between the Legia Warsaw and Leicester in Warsaw on Thursday night but was removed from reffing in the HNL 11th round even before today's decision. 

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

To learn more about sport in Croatia, CLICK HERE.

September 29, 2021 - Tickets are on sale for the Croatia World Cup qualifier against Slovakia at City Garden Stadium in Osijek on October 11.

The Croatia national football team will continue qualifying for the 2022 World Cup in October. Zlatko Dalić's team will play against Cyprus in Larnaca on October 8 and Slovakia three days later in Osijek, reports HNS.

Online ticket sales for both Cyprus and Slovakia started on September 28 at 3 pm, the Croatian Football Federation announced.

The ticket price for the match against Cyprus is 80 kuna, and tickets can only be purchased online. One person can buy a maximum of four tickets.

Online ticket sales include a personal collection at the stadium box office with the presentation of a passport and a purchase confirmation (voucher), which is downloaded from the user's website after a successful purchase. Replacing vouchers at the stadium will be determined later, and all customers will be notified by e-mail.

Only citizens of the Republic of Croatia have the right to purchase online, regardless of residence address, by filling in personal data (name and surname, OIB, passport or identity card number, date of birth, and customer address). In addition to their data, the buyer also enters data on other spectators for whom they buy tickets, while other spectators do not have to be Croatian citizens.

The deadline for purchasing tickets is October 1 until 12 noon, i.e., until the availability of tickets is used.

Buying tickets for Croatia fans for the match against Cyprus is possible only through the Croatian Football Federation website. Croatia fans will not purchase tickets at the stadium box office or access the stadium without a voucher.

Entry to the stadium will be allowed only to those fans who have a valid EU digital COVID certificate issued based on complete vaccination or recovery of the coronavirus. EU digital COVID certificates issued based on PCR or antigen tests will not be recognized. HNS notes that no different vaccination certificates or sickness certificates will be recognized, but only the EU digital COVID certificate with a valid QR code checked at the entrance.

Ticket sales are organized exclusively online for the qualifying match between Croatia and Slovakia at City Garden Stadium in Osijek (October 11 at 8.45 pm). Ticket prices in presale (as of October 10) are 150 kn (west), 100 kn (east), and 75 kn (south). On the day of the match on October 11, the prices will be 200, 120 and 90 kn.

Everyone coming to the stadium must have an EU digital COVID certificate. However, children under the age of 12 who have a ticket can enter the stadium without an EU digital COVID certificate if accompanied by a parent or guardian who has a certificate and a ticket.

Ticket sales include e-tickets that the customer must download and print. Only citizens of the Republic of Croatia have the right to purchase, regardless of residence address, by filling in the required personal information.

One person can buy up to four tickets. In addition to their data, the buyer can also enter data on other ticket holders, where they do not necessarily have to be a citizen of the Republic of Croatia.

TICKETS CAN BE PURCHASED HERE

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To learn more about sport in Croatia, CLICK HERE.

September 18, 2021 - Croatian women's football will see an HRK 3.5 million investment by the Croatian Football Federation (HNS).

This week, the Croatian Football Federation paid the first installment of funds into Croatian women's football clubs, for which HRK 3.5 million is planned annually, reports HNS.

In cooperation with FIFA and using funds from the Forward program, the Croatian Football Federation will invest HRK 3.5 million in developing women's football this year.

The funds will be used to co-finance the national leagues of cadets and pioneers, which were successfully launched last year, and the new season began in early September. Also, the funds will be used to organize work in all women's clubs to give strong support to the further development of women's football in Croatia.

"Increasing interest in football among girls and raising the quality of women's football are among the important strategic goals of the Federation in the coming period. The launch of national leagues for cadets and pioneers was an important step forward for women's football in Croatia. We will continue to financially monitor this project to raise the quality in those ages and enable long-term growth in the quality of our first league and senior national team. This is a long-term project with which HNS stands firmly. In cooperation with FIFA, we will try to provide women's clubs and our football players with the best possible conditions and the best possible competitions," said HNS President Marijan Kustić.

The Croatia women's national team opened a new World Cup qualifying cycle with a visit to Romania, where they lost 2:0.

Mate Prskalo's team made their first appearance in the qualifications for the World Cup, which will be played in 2023 in Australia and New Zealand. Croatia played Romania, a rival they also met in the previous qualifications for the European Championship.

Romania took the lead with a goal by Rus after 12 minutes of play, and in the 32nd minute, Carp headed in the second goal for the final 2:0.

In the remaining matches of the first round of Group G, Italy beat Moldova 3:0 at home, while Switzerland beat Lithuania 4:1. In four days, Croatia will welcome Italy in Karlovac.

World Cup Qualifiers, Group G:
1. Switzerland 3
2. Italy 3
3. Romania 3
4. Croatia 0
5. Lithuania 0
6. Moldova 0

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To learn more about sport in Croatia, CLICK HERE.