In 1991, Yugoslavia split up, and the independent countries of Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, and Serbia-Montenegro were formed. Since that time, Croatia has been very successful at the World Cup, having qualified for the World Cup in 1998, 2002, 2006, 2014, 2018, 2022, and 2026.

In 2018, this nation of just over 4 million people had its best tournament result ever, making the final for the first time and going down gallantly 4-2 to France.

In 2022, Croatia upset higher-ranked teams again. Croatia beat tournament favorites Brazil in the round of 16, making a date with Argentina in the quarter-final. They finished third in the competition.

Croatia qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where they reached the Round of 32.

1998

Croatia made it to the semi-finals of the 1998 FIFA World Cup, but lost 1-2 to France. The team won the Netherlands 2-1 in the third-place match of the competition.

2002

Croatia didn't make it out of Group G at the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

2006

Croatia didn't qualify from Group F at the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

2014

Croatia didn't qualify from Group A at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

2018

Croatia reached the final of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, but lost 2-4 to France. The team won Denmark in the Round of 16, Russia in the quarter-finals, and England in the semi-finals.

2022

Croatia reached the semi-finals of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, but couldn't progress to the next stage after they lost 0-3 to Argentina.

2026

Croatia qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and were drawn into Group L alongside England, Panama, and Ghana. After an opening 4–2 loss to England, Croatia recovered with a 1–0 win over Panama and a 2–1 win over Ghana to finish second in the group and reach the knockout stage.

In the Round of 32, the ageing golden generation's tournament was ended by Portugal, who won a tight game 2–1.

Date Result Opponent
17 June 2–4 England
23 June 1–0 Panama
27 June 2–1 Ghana
2 July 1–2 Portugal (Round of 32)

Trivia

  • The only player to have scored for two countries in the World Cup is Robert Prosinecki, who represented Yugoslavia in 1990, scoring against the United Arab Emirates, and for Croatia in 1998, scoring against Jamaica.