The captain of the Croatia national football team, Luka Modrić, who was also named the best footballer in the world last year, will be honored yet again - and this time, with a postage stamp. Namely, Croatian Post has announced that a new stamp will be launched at the commemorative event “Croatian Sport - Luka Modrić" on Monday, March 25th, reports HRT on March 22, 2019. 

“The most prominent captain of the Croatia football team, with his efforts and dedication, besides numerous prestigious professional awards, deserved this rare acknowledgment. The stamps issued in Luka’s in honor will be printed in 300,000 copies, and the nominal value of the stamp is 10 kuna,” reads the official statement from the Croatian Post, who added that Zagreb designer Alenka Lalić adapted the photo of Drago Sopta’s for this release.

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Modrić will be the first sportsperson to be featured on a Croatian postage stamp since Ivica Kostelić in 2007, though you may recall the Croatia national team showcased in 2018 after their World Cup success. 

Recall, Luka Modrić had an absolutely phenomenal 2018. Not only did he win the Champions League with Real Madrid for the third consecutive year, but he led Croatia to the World Cup final, where he was also awarded the Golden Ball of the tournament. Following Russia, Luka was named the best footballer in Europe by UEFA, the world by FIFA, and was even named the world’s best athlete by the AIPS! After winning all the prestigious individual awards for his performance in 2018, Luka Modrić was also nominated for the famed Laureus award. 

There will be nine Luka Modrić stamped issued in each package, and the Croatian Post has also published this as a First Day Cover, which gives it even more significance and value to stamp collectors. 

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

March 20, 2019 - The historic national team kit of Croatia is making a buzz in the football world yet again.

According to Croatian media reports, Luka Modrić has invited Darijo Srna back to the national team.

Croatia captain Luka Modrić has been nominated for the Laureus World Sportsman of the Year, known as the Oscar of Sports. 

The story of Luka Modrić's life inspired the world - from a boy who fled his birthplace of Obrovac with his family during the war, to living as refugees, and today being named the best footballer in the world.

Index.hr reports on January 7, 2019, that back in 2016, Spanish sports journalists Vicente Azpitarte and Jose Manuel Puertas announced the book "Luka Modrić: Son of War" (Luka Modric: El hijo de la guerra), which talks about Modric's upbringing and his road to Real Madrid, one of the most powerful clubs in the world. Davor Šuker wrote the preface.

The 208-page biography of a boy who, according to the testimony, broke more windows than Serbian bombs playing football at the refugee hotel "Iž" in Zadar, will soon be translated into Japanese.

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When Vicente Azpitrate, the co-author of the biography, recently visited Japan to finalize the new edition of the book about Luka, he was surprised by the cover photo. The publishers thus decided to use a picture of Luka with his hair pushed back to reveal his face on the cover instead. 

Image from one of the events promoting the book

When Azpitrate asked the publishers why they chose to represent Luka in this way, and not of him playing football, in a duel or celebrating on the pitch, he received a rather interesting answer.

“In Japan, Modrić is considered one of the most attractive footballers in the world. He is a sex symbol, and our women think he is more handsome and more beautiful than Cristiano Ronaldo," the Japanese publishers explained.

It is not just about his long hair, facial structure, and pointed nose, but ultimately his life story, growing up in fear, persistent work and the difficult path he overcame.

"The life of this Croatian footballer is full of difficulties that eventually turned him into one of the greatest stars of world football. For this status, he faced all the obstacles and the war in the Balkans,” reads the introduction to the book about Luka, which contains statements from his teammates, coaches, friends, and journalists who have followed him during his career.

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

The phenomenal year for Luka Modrić continues with his latest award by the AIPS.

The famous Spanish sports daily Marca has conducted a major poll among its readers to choose the top 100 footballers in 2018. Six Croatian footballers made the list. 

Captain of Croatia national team Luka Modrić could face a judge in Madrid at the beginning of 2019, who will decide on his settlement with the Spanish tax administration, reports HRT on December 30, 2018. 

Modrić, the 33-year-old Real Madrid midfielder and Ballon d’Or winner, has accepted a tax fraud charge of 870,728, euro and has agreed to pay 1.4 million euro for penalties and interest.

“We will solve the case of Cristiano Ronaldo first, and then there will be a hearing for Modrić, possibly early in the year. We still do not have the exact date,” court spokesperson Luis Salas said in a telephone conversation. Modrić will have to make a statement personally, as he lives here, Salas added.

Ronaldo, despite his initial claim to be innocent, has decided to settle with the tax administration and state attorney's office and pay 19 million euro in unpaid taxes, interest, and penalties. He is charged with having deliberately evaded taxes in Spain from 2011 2014 and owes 14.7 million in income tax from sponsorship contracts by opening up companies in foreign tax havens.

Ronaldo was declared the best footballer of the world in 2017. This year, the Ballon d’Or for the best in the world was given to Luka Modrić.

The Spanish State Attorney's Office charged Modrić and his wife Vanja in 2017 for tax fraud of 870,728 euro. They opened the company Ivano S.a.r.l in Luxembourg where Modrić received money from sponsorship contracts in 2013 and 2014.

The investigation began in 2016 when taxpayers noticed that their tax returns for these two years had no income derived from sponsorship contracts. He stated on the property card that he owned the company Ivano S.a.r.l., named after his son, with Vanja as the manager. 

Opening a company in Luxembourg for the management of Modrić's image is in accordance with the law, and he can receive financial gain through it if it is engaged in that activity. Activities include promotional events, commercials, videos, interviews, and so on, and a contract that allows Modrić to leave his rights to the company in exchange for financial compensation.

The tax police reviewed the company Ivano S.a.r.l. and found that the company did not deal with the management of Luka Modrić’s image, that he had no employees and equipment, and that he used the company as a footballer avoiding taxes in Spain. Investigators have concluded that in Luxembourg, which has low taxes, there is nothing but a registered company at the address. The account showed that he was paid money from Nike, and other sponsors and marketing contracts he had with Real Madrid. 

According to Modrić’s contract and his company Ivano S.a.r.l., that money would be withdrawn after completing his football career.

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

The traditional selection of the Croatian Olympic Committee (HOO) was held on Wednesday evening for the ‘Great Day of Croatian Sports’ at the Westin Hotel in Zagreb. Luka Modric and Sandra Perkovic have thus been declared the best athletes in Croatia, while the Croatia national football team was named the best team by the Croatian Olympic Committee (HOO), reports Gol.hr on December 19, 2018. 

Captain of the Croatia national team (and Ballon d’Or winner) Luka Modrić is the first footballer to celebrate in this HOO category, while Perkovič has been the best for the seventh consecutive year, which has not been achieved by any other Croatian athlete.

Recall, Sandra Perković defended the title of the European Champion for the fifth time in Berlin, which is a record among both male and female athletes in all disciplines. All seven of the world's longest throws this season are by Sandra, and only an illness prevented her from conquering the Diamond League.

Sandra won in the selection in front of shooter Snježana Pejčić, who won the bronze at the World Cup, and the European champion in taekwondo Kristina Tomić.

“For seven years in a row I am the best female athlete, I could not even dream of that. The next year will be used to get ready for the 2020 Olympic Games when I will do something indescribable,” Sandra said.

Luka Modrić had the season of his dreams - from becoming the European Champion with Real Madrid once again to becoming World Cup finalists with Croatia. Luka is the first footballer in history to win all four prestigious awards for 'the best' in a season. Modrić was named the best footballer at the World Cup in Russia, the world's best footballer by FIFA, the best European footballer by UEFA, and the Ballon d’Or winner by the France Football magazine.

Modrić was chosen as the best in Croatia in competition with World Champion and Europe’s second best in karate Ivan Kvesić and two-time silver medalist at the World Championships, sports shooter Petar Gorša. As Modrić was with Real Madrid at the World Club Championship in UAE, his father Stipe received the award on his behalf.

The Croatia national football team was proclaimed the best team in Croatia, ahead of the Davis Cup team and the beach handball team. The award was received by coach Zlatko Dalić, who was also nominated for the best trainer.

“My team is still the most deserving of this award for the best coach. This great synergy has led us to the greatest success of Croatian football in history, but we hope that we can do even more. We showed that everything is possible and that the 'small can be great'. We have good players who can create good results, we have unity in the team and we have to use it in the qualifications for the European Championship and then at the Euro,” Dalić said.

The Croatia football team also received the award for Croatia's largest promoter in the world, which was received by the president of the Croatian Football Federation Davor Šuker.

The award for the most successful sports pair, relay or crew was awarded to rowing World and European Champions in coxless pair, brothers Valent and Martin Sinković. Just one year after they switched disciplines from double sculls, the Sinković brothers conquered the world in their new discipline. In Glasgow, they first took the European Championships and then came to Plovdiv to prevail at the World Championships. 

In this category, second place was won by another brother duo - Šime and Mihovil Fantela - who, like the Sinković brothers, also changed sailing disciplines (classes) and in Denmark, Aarhus sensationally became World Champions in the 49er class.

The most successful women’s team was declared the Croatia karate team, consisting of Ana Marija Bujas Čelan, Ana Lenard, Marina Barac and Alesandra Hassani, who won the bronze at the European Championships. The karate team celebrated in front of the crossbow national team and the volleyball team.

A special HOO award for the promotion of sports went to the Croatian men's tennis team, who won the Davis Cup over France in Lille for the second time in history.

Cyclist Marin Ranteš won the HOO award for fairplay, and Morana Paliković Gruden was awarded the Trophy of the International Olympic Committee "Olympians in Action" in the Gender Equality category.

Finally, the special HOO award "Matija Ljubek" was given to Vjekoslav Šafranić and Branko Omazić from Zagreb, Danko Jerković and Ante Tanfara from Šibenik, and Handball Club Rudar from Ruda near Samobor.

Prime Minister Andrej Plenković also attended the ceremony, and congratulated Croatia’s athletes on their great success.

“All of Croatia is living with your successes, which are the successes of Croatia, and you have proven that we are a nation with a winning mentality and character. We all followed the World Cup in Russia which was a mega event that went beyond the scope of sports. And it was nice to follow our tennis players who won the Davis Cup in Lille and got the ’sweet revenge' on our French friends. The role of the state and the government is to encourage Croatian sport, so we have increased the budget of the Central State Office for Sport from 200 to 300 million kuna, and we started withdrawing funds from the European Social Fund for sport projects,” said Plenković.

In addition, Minister of Finance Zdravko Marić, former national team football coach Miroslav Ćiro Blažević, and special guest Japanese Ambassador to the Republic of Croatia, Keiji Takeguchi attended the event.

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

The Union of European Football Associations, known better as UEFA, will select the best 11 footballers of 2018. Luka Modrić and Ivan Rakitić are among the 50 nominees.