March 21, 2022 - The 28th round of the Croatian First League was played from March 18 to 20, 2022. This round saw Rijeka complicate their race for the title as Gorica won 1:0, while Hajduk, Dinamo, and Osijek recorded wins to keep the top of the standings tight. Here is our HNL round 28 recap. 

Hr. Dragovoljac v. Istra 1961 (0:0)

Dragovoljac and Istra opened the 28th round on Friday, March 18, 2022, in Zagreb in front of 200 fans. 

Neither team was able to score, and the game ended 0:0. 

Dragovoljac is currently in the last place with 14 points, while Istra is in 9th with 25. 

Gorica v. Rijeka (1:0)

Gorica and Rijeka met in Velika Gorica on Saturday, March 19, 2022. 

The first half went without goals, and Da Cruz was booked for his second yellow in the 60th minute, forcing Gorica to play with a man down for the remainder of the match. However, a Cestic own goal put Gorica in the lead in the 73rd minute and gave them the ultimate win. 

Gorica is currently in 6th place with 36 points, while Rijeka is in 4th with 52. 

Hajduk v. Lokomotiva (4:0)

Hajduk and Lokomotiva met in the second match on Saturday, March 19, at Poljud Stadium in Split. 

Nikola Kalinić scored Hajduk's first goal in the 22nd minute for 1:0. Grgić scored the second though it was recalled due to VAR. Krovinović made it 2:0 for Hajduk just before the halftime whistle. Melnjak scored for 3:0 in the 54th minute and Sahiti for the final 4:0 eight minutes later. 

Hajduk is currently in 3rd place with 52 points and a game in hand, while Lokomotiva is in 5th with 36. 

Slaven Belupo v. Dinamo (0:1)

Slaven Belupo and Dinamo met in Koprivnica on Sunday, March 20, 2022.. 

Petović scored from an offside position in the 9th minute which VAR called back. Oršić scored the winning goal in the 20th minute for 0:1. 

Belupo is currently in 7th place with 30 points, while Dinamo is in 1st with 57 and a game in hand. 

Šibenik v. Osijek (0:3)

Šibenik and Osijek closed out the 28th round on Sunday, March 20, 2022, in Šibenik. 

While the first half went without goals, Lovrić scored for 0:1 Osijek, followed by a Marin own goal for 0:2, and a Topcagic goal for 0:3. 

Šibenik is currently in 8th place with 26 points, while Osijek is in 2nd with 57. 

You can see the HNL standings HERE. 

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

March 20, 2022 - Croatia national team coach Zlatko Dalić has called up Osijek defender Mile Škorić and Dinamo Moscow midfielder Nikola Moro to the upcoming friendly matches against Slovenia and Bulgaria in Qatar.

The Croatia national football team will play two friendly matches later this month in Qatar, the host of the 2022 World Cup. The first match is scheduled for Saturday, March 26 at 3 pm against Slovenia. The second match will be played against Bulgaria on Tuesday, March 29 at 4 pm, both at the Education City Stadium in Doha.

These will be the first Croatia national team matches after qualifying for the 2022 World Cup and will serve as preparation for coach Zlatko Dalić and what awaits the team for the rest of the year. This tournament also serves as excellent preparation for the World Cup in Qatar, as the climate and stadiums will be tested. As far as tactics are concerned, Dalić will also test a new formation with three in the backline as there will be no room to experiment in the four Nations League matches in June.

"We'll try a new system with three in the back and we'll see how it works. We'll stick to our tactics so far, but now we have some training, so we will try something different," said Dalić ahead of the tournament. 

"We've tried putting three players in the back a couple of times, but now we have time and we want to try that system. Several of our players play it in their clubs and it could fit."

Dalić subsequently added two players from the reserves list, namely Mile Škorić from Osijek and Nikola Moro from Dinamo Moscow for the friendly matches against Slovenia and Bulgaria. Osijek defender Mile Škorić will join the national team at a gathering in Zagreb on Monday (March 21), while Dinamo Moscow midfielder Nikola Moro will arrive in Doha, where the 2018 World Cup finalists will arrive on Tuesday.

Source: HNS

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March 17, 2022 - A regular session of the Croatian Football Federation Assembly was held at the Sheraton Hotel in Zagreb, chaired by HNS President Marijan Kustić.

President Kustić addressed the Assembly with a speech, as reported by HNS.

“Dear members of the Assembly, dear friends, thank you for coming to today's Assembly, where the main topic is the report on the work in 2021, which was great for the Croatian Football Federation. But I believe that the current year will be even more successful, even better, and even richer with top sports and business results. I believe that we all agree that the agreement on the sale of TV rights is a historically important step forward for Croatian football and our clubs. I want to thank Hrvatski Telekom and Supersport for their trust. I am convinced of the very successful cooperation through which we will further strengthen our First League and other competitions in terms of commercial, marketing, and PR. The agreed 44 million euros in four years will be a significant contribution to the budgets of our clubs and will ensure the further development of football in the country," said Kustić, among other things.

Drago Sopta / HNS

You can read the entire speech of the president of HNS, Marijan Kustić, here.

The President of the Verification Commission, Dubravko Galović, submitted a report in which it was established that 68 deputies were present at the session, with 11 absent.

The assembly members then adopted the report of the verification commission, the proposed agenda, and the minutes from the last session.

Drago Sopta / HNS

The members of the Assembly adopted the final account for 2021, which was presented by the Head of the Department of Finance and Accounting, Ružica Bajrić. Revenues of HRK 286,510,776.64 and expenditures in the amount of HRK 260,107,490.26 were realized, i.e., a surplus of revenues over expenditures of HRK 26,403,286.38. The largest revenues were generated from the following activities: revenues from the participation of the A national team in the European Championship, revenues from marketing, TV rights, tickets, and equipment. On the other hand, the biggest expenses are related to the association's activities, i.e., the organization of matches of all national teams, development and promotion, football, expenses for employees, depreciation, donations, and other expenses.

John Gašparac summarized the main points from the audit report.

"In our opinion, the financial reports fairly presented the financial position of the HNS and its financial performance, following the Law," Gašparac said.

Drago Sopta / HNS

The General Assembly Secretary-General Siniša Krajač, Director of the Sports Directorate at the Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Krešimir Šamija, UEFA Hattrick Program Manager, Denis Bastari, and HNS Honorary President, Branko Mikša, increased the Assembly session.

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

March 14, 2022 - The 27th round of the Croatian First League was held from March 11 to 13, 2022. This round featured the highly anticipated 'Eternal Derby' between Hajduk and Dinamo, while Osijek and Rijeka both complicated their fight for the title. Here is our HNL round 27 recap. 

Šibenik v. Lokomotiva (1:4)

Sibenik and Lokomotiva opened the 27th round on Friday, March 11, 2022, in Sibenik in front of 405 fans. 

Grezda put Sibenik in the lead with a goal in the 14th minute for 1:0. Kacavenda equalized for 1:1 in the 65th minute before Soldo put Lokomotiva in the lead two minutes later. Sibenik's Peric received his second yellow less than 5 minutes later, forcing Sibenik to play with a man down for the remainder of the match. Kacavenda scored again to make it 1:3 in the 76th minute and Tuci scored for 1:4 to confirm the Lokomotiva victory. 

Sibenik is currently in 8th place with 26 points while Lokomotiva is in 5th with 36. 

Slaven Belupo v. Istra 1961 (0:0)

Slaven Belupo and Istra met in Koprivnica on Saturday, March 12, 2022.

Neither team was able to score and the match ended 0:0. Belupo had 17 total shots to Istra's 7, of which only 4 were on target (Istra had only 2). Belupo received 5 yellow cards to Istra's 4. 

Belupo is currently in 7th place with 30 points, while Istra is in 9th with 24. 

Hajduk v. Dinamo (0:0)

Hajduk and Dinamo met for the highly anticipated 'Eternal Derby' at Poljud on Saturday, March 12. 

While the atmosphere was better than ever at the sold-out Poljud, for the first time full thanks solely to Hajduk's members and season ticket holders, the derby itself was one of the less exciting meetings between the two rivals. The match went without goals, though Hajdkuk had 3 shots on target to Dinamo's 0. Hajduk had slightly less possession than Dinamo (44%/56%). 

Hajduk is currently in 4th place with 49 points and a game in hand, while Dinamo is in 1st with 54 points and a game in hand. These two teams play last season's makeup match on April 20 at Poljud. 

Dragovoljac v. Rijeka (2:1)

Dragovoljac and Rijeka met in Zagreb on Sunday, March 13, 2022. 

Certainly the most shocking match of this round, Dragovoljac took the lead in the 23rd minute thanks to Peric (1:0). Peric opened the second half with another goal for 2:0 in the 50th minute. Ampem gave Rijeka some hope in the 74th minute scoring for 2:1, while VAR recalled a Dragovoljac goal in the 83rd minute for being offside. 

Dragovoljac is currently in the last place with 13 points, while Rijeka is in 3rd with 52. 

Osijek v. Gorica (0:0)

Osijek and Gorica closed out the 27th round on March 13, 2022, at City Garden Stadium. 

Yet another match of the 27th round that went without goals, Osijek had only 51% possession to Gorica's 49%. Osijek also had only 3 shots on target to Gorica's 6!

Osijek is currently in 2nd place with 54 points, while Gorica is in 6th place with 33 points. 

You can see the HNL standings HERE. 

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

March 9, 2022 - Rijeka topped Osijek in the final minutes of a thrilling extra time to secure a spot in the Croatian Cup final against Hajduk on May 26! 

Rijeka and Osijek met in the Croatian Cup semifinal at Rujevica on Wednesday. In the other semifinal played last week, Hajduk beat Gorica for a spot in the final at Poljud on May 26.

Rijeka reached the semifinal by eliminating Pitomača (0:7) in the last 32, Oriolik Oriovac (0:6) in the round of 16, and knocking out Dinamo in the quarterfinal at Maksimir. Goran Tomić's team celebrated 3:1 and it was also the last game for coach Damir Krznar on the Dinamo bench.

Osijek did not concede a goal on their way to the semifinal. They defeated Bednja Beletinec 0:3, then Rudeš 0:2 in the last 16, after which they hosted Slaven Belupo in the quarterfinal. Osijek and Belupo played for 120 minutes before a penalty shootout which Osijek won. 

Before this Cup match, Osijek played 0:0 against Lokomotiva on Friday in the Croatian First League, while Rijeka beat Slaven Belupo 3:0 on Saturday, separating these two teams by only one point.

Lineups

Rijeka: Labrović, Velkovski, Čestić, Krešić, Bušnja, Čerin, Pavičić, Selahi, Vukčević, Vučkić, Drmić

Osijek: Ivušić, Cheberko, Škorić, Lončar. Grgić, Žaper, Kleinheisler, Leovac, Fiolić, Caktaš, Mierez

Recap

Rijeka took the 1:0 lead in the 20th minute with a goal by Krešić. Gnezda Čerin sent a freekick into Osijek's penalty area, which Krešić headed into the goal for the lead. 

Osijek equalized in the 42nd minute for 1:1 thanks to Mijo Caktaš, scoring the 11th goal of his career against Rijeka and the first in the Osijek jersey.

Josip Drmić put Rijeka back in the lead in the 77th minute for his 18th goal of the season. In the 2nd minute of stoppage time, Mance equalized for Osijek to send the match into extra time! 

While the first half of extra time went without a goal, with the nerves of penalties on the horizon, Merkulov scored in the 188th minute for the Rijeka lead and ultimate win for a spot in the Croatian Cup final against Hajduk on May 26! 

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

March 7, 2022 - Coach Zlatko Dalić has announced the Croatia player list for Doha friendlies later this month against Slovenia and Bulgaria. 

The Croatia national football team is back this month! Coach Zlatko Dalić has published a list of players he is counting on for friendly matches against Slovenia and Bulgaria in Doha, reports Gol.hr.

Croatia will first play against Slovenia on March 26 at 3 pm, while they will play against Bulgaria on March 29 at 4 pm.

"We want to play good games, we are going to win, but it will be a little more relaxed. We want to make the most of those eight days."

"We will try to play in Doha with three players in the back. That does not mean we will change the system in general. We will try to change our way of playing because after a long time we finally have enough training to try. Some of our players play like that in clubs and we will try to see what it looks like in the national team," announced Dalić.

"4-2-3-1 and 4-3-3 were both good at some points, but now we're going to train with three."

Croatia does not go to Qatar without problems.

"We have some problems. Lovren is not in training, I don't know how ready he will be, but he is going to Doha. Majer and Perišić skipped this week, Vrsaljko got hit in the hip. Quite painful, but it won't be dangerous and he will be good in a few days. They stayed in rhythm."

Dominik Livaković is the chosen goalkeeper. 

"Grbić has not defended in the last games. If his status does not change, we will not count on him. He has to defend to be on the national team."

Šime Vrsaljko returns to the national team.

"He is playing again, he has a continuity of games and he is healthy. Now he is playing the way he should for the national team. I need him like this. I want more from him. We had a conversation, no big problems. I hope it gets even better. The conversation remains between us. He plays well; that's what I need."

Dalić wanted stronger friendly matches.

"I wanted one stronger, one slightly weaker game, and it failed because of the organizations. Slovenia and Bulgaria are not top-level, but the matches carry some uncertainty. We need games because of the second strongest group for the World Cup. We can try some things and collect some more points if we need them for the second strong group, although I think it's over." 

Croatia's player list for Slovenia and Bulgaria

Goalkeepers: Livaković, Ivušić, Grbić

Defenders: Vida, Lovren, Vrsaljko, Barišić, Čaleta-Car, Juranović, Gvardiol, Sosa, Pongračić

Midfielders: Modrić, Kovačić, Brozović, Pašalić, Vlašić, Majer, Jakić

Attackers: Perišić, Kramarić, Brekalo, Oršić, Livaja, Budimir

Callups: L. Kalinić, Škorić, Čolak, Moro

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

March 7, 2022 - The 26th round of the Croatian First League was played from March 4 to 6, 2022. Osijek and Hajduk recorded draws in this round, while Dinamo and Rijeka booked 3:0 victories. Here is our HNL round 26 recap. 

Lokomotiva v. Osijek (0:0)

Lokomotiva and Osijek opened the 26th round on Friday, March 4, 2022, in Zagreb in front of 884 fans. 

Neither team was able to score, and the match ended 0:0. 

Lokomotiva is currently in 5th place with 33 points, while Osijek has dropped to 2nd place with 53. 

Dinamo v. Sibenik (3:0)

Dinamo and Sibenik met on Satuday, March 5, 2022, at Maksimir in front of 2,421 fans. 

Bockaj scored Dinamo's first goal for 1:0 in the 16th minute. Petkovic increased Dinamo's lead with a goal in the 58th minute for 2:0. Finally, Baturina secured Dinamo's victory with a goal for 3:0 in the 76th minute. 

Dinamo has moved back to first place with 53 points and a game in hand, while Sibenik is in 8th place with 26 points. 

Rijeka v. Slaven Belupo (3:0)

Rijeka and Belupo met on Saturday, March 5, 2022, at Rujevica in front of 3,421 fans. 

While the first half went without goals, Vuckic scored for the Rijeka lead in the 55th minute for 1:0. Drmic increased Rijeka's lead to 2:0 in the 70th minute, before Čerin made it 3:0 9 minutes later, which was the final score. 

Rijeka is currently in 3rd place with 52 points, while Belupo is in 7th with 29. 

Gorica v. Hr. Dragovoljac (4:0)

Gorica and Dragovoljac met on Sunday, March 6, 2022, in Velika Gorica. 

Though Kalik missed a penalty in the 10th minute for Gorica, Atiemwen scored the second-awarded penalty for Gorica in the 22nd minute for 1:0. Subaric received a red card for Dragovoljac in the 45th minute, forcing them to play with a man down for the remainder of the match. Muhammed scored for 2:0 Gorica in the 47th minute, followed by Da Cruz for 3:0 in the 52nd and Kalik for 4:0 in the 59th. 

Gorica is currently in 6th place with 32 points, while Dragovoljac is in last place with 10. 

Istra 1961 v. Hajduk (1:1)

Istra and Hajduk closed out the 26th round on Sunday, March 6, 2022, in Pula. 

Nikola Kalinić scored his first goal for Hajduk since he's returned in the 30th minute for 0:1. Drena Beljo equalized for Istra in the 54th minute for 1:1. Hajduk scored one minute later though it was ultimately recalled thanks to VAR. The match ended 1:1. 

Istra is currently in 9th place with 23 points, while Hajduk is in 4th with 48 and a game in hand. 

You can see the full HNL standings HERE. 

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

March 3, 2022 - Krunoslav Rendulić is no longer the coach of HNK Gorica, the Croatian first league team officially announced on Thursday after losing to Hajduk in the Croatian Cup semifinal.

The Croatian Cup semifinal loss was the seventh consecutive defeat for Rendulić on the Gorica bench, the leaders of the club and coach agreed to end cooperation.

"On behalf of the club, I would like to thank Krunoslav Rendulić for the excellent cooperation we have had in less than a year. Unfortunately, the results crisis we entered did not leave me too much room for some other decisions. I must emphasize that in the last month we have all done our best to try to change the decline in results to a positive, but it simply did not work," said club president Nenad Crnko and added:

"In some other times, it is possible that we would have made such decisions earlier, but there were many objective reasons to try to restore the team's self-confidence on the field and thus keep Rendulić. The match in Split was not the trigger for this decision, Kruno deserved to try to reach the final with the team with which he advanced to the semifinal, but the negative series that followed and this match simply imposed this option."

Until the appointment of a new coach, the team will be led by Saša Sabljak.

Gorica entered the Championship strongly this season. While they easily beat the weaker opponents, it was a bit tougher to win points against the current leading four, although on one occasion a point was taken at Poljud and all three at Rujevica. However, after the victory against Rijeka, they lost at home to Šibenik and added six more defeats, five in the championship and yesterday in the Cup semifinal. 

Source: HRT

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February 22, 2022 - The Croatian Football Federation has secured 44 million euros for Croatian football TV and media rights over the next four competition years.

At Monday's session, the Croatian Football Federation Executive Board decided on selecting partners for television and media rights for competitions under the auspices of HNS for the next four competition years, reports the HNS website. 

After terminating the contract with Endorphin Magine, the HNS management held meetings with companies interested in buying TV and media rights, followed by three official offers to purchase TV rights - A1 Croatia, Hrvatski Telekom, Sportklub and AB SportConsulting. At the same time, the SuperSport offer for media rights arrived.

At the session, the HNS Executive Board considered the three received offers and chose Hrvatski Telekom, which was the most generous of 9 million euros per year. Thus, in the four years that the contract is expected to last, Hrvatski Telekom will pay 36 million euros to HNS for the associated TV rights.

In addition, the SuperSport offer for media rights of 1.5 million euros per competition year for sponsorship rights and 500,000 euros per competition year for betting rights was accepted.

In total, HNS has secured 44 million euros for television and media rights over the next four years.

"As we announced last week, we quickly found the best solution for Croatian clubs and Croatian football as a whole. Negotiations with interested companies showed great interest in Croatian club football and accepted offers from HT and SuperSport best confirm this great value.

We are glad to continue our cooperation with Hrvatski Telekom, which has been a great partner of Croatian football for many years, so we do not doubt that this cooperation will be very successful. This is an unprecedented step forward for the Federation and our clubs, and I am convinced that these 44 million euros will ensure further progress in the First League and all other competitions," said HNS President Marijan Kustić.

An agreement has also been made between Hrvatski Telekom and HRT, according to which one match of each round will be broadcast on national television.

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

February 21, 2022 - The 24th round of the Croatian First League was held from February 18 to 20, 2022. This round saw a Livaja hattrick for the Hajduk win, a last-minute goal for Osijek over Istra, and a 0:0 draw a Maksimir to shake up the top of the standings. Here is our HNL round 24 recap. 

Gorica v. Slaven Belupo (0:3)

Gorica and Slaven Belupo opened the 24th round on Friday, February 18, 2022, in Velika Gorica in front of 285 fans. 

Caimacov scored an early first goal of the match for 0:1 Belupo in the 2nd minute. Zvonarek increased Belupo's lead to 0:2 in the 10th minute. A Jovicic red card forced Gorica to play with a man down from the 56th minute, after which Marina scored a penalty for 0:3, the final score. 

Gorica is currently in 6th place with 29 points, while Belupo is in 7th with 26. 

Hr Dragovoljac v. Hajduk (0:3)

Dragovoljac and Hajduk met on Saturday, February 19, 2022, in Zagreb in front of 1,650 fans. 

Hajduk was awarded a penalty in the 32nd minute, which Marko Livaja scored for 0:1. Livaja was solid on another Hajduk penalty in the 74th minute for 0:2, before a Biuk assist found Livaja for the final 0:3 in the 79th minute. 

Dragovoljac is currently in the last place with 10 points, while Hajduk is in 3rd with 47 and a game in hand. 

Istra 1961 v. Osijek (2:3)

Istra and Osijek met on Saturday, February 19, 2022, in Pula in front of 762 fans. 

A Caktas goal put Osijek ahead in the 27th minute for 0:1. Zaper made it 0:2 13 minutes later. Then, Beljo scored for 1:2 in the 57th minute before Galilea equalized in the 84th minute. Finally, Mance scored in the 6th minute of stoppage time for the 2:3 Osijek win. 

Istra is currently in 9th place with 22 points, while Osijek is in 2nd with 49. 

Rijeka v. Sibenik (4:2)

Rijeka and Sibenik met on Sunday, February 20, 2022, at Rujevica Stadium in front of 3,084 fans. 

Selahi scored for 1:0 Rijeka in the 16th minute. VAR called Sibenik's goal offside in the 23rd minute. Vuckic made it 2:0 for Rijeka in the 34th. Muric and Vuckic made it 4:0 by the 66th minute, before Sibenik scored two goals in the 70th and 84th for the final 4:2. 

Rijeka is currently in 4th place with 46 points, while Sibenik is in 8th with 23. 

Dinamo v. Lokomotiva (0:0)

Dinamo and Lokomotiva closed out the 24th round on Sunday at Maksimir in front of 1,886 fans. 

Neither team was able to score, and the match ended 0:0.

Dinamo is currently in first place with 50 points and a game in hand, while Lokomotiva is in 5th place with 29 points. 

You can see the HNL standings HERE. 

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