Croatia national under-19 football team

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Croatia women's national under-19 football team.

Croatia U19

Nickname(s)	Mladi Vatreni (The Young Blazers)
Association	Croatian Football Federation (HNS)
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Siniša Oreščanin
Most caps	Teo Kardum (28)
Top scorer	Nikola Kalinić (11)
FIFA code	CRO
First colours Second colours
First international
Malta 0–4 Croatia (Ta' Qali, Malta; 24 November 1993)
Biggest win
Croatia 10–0 Andorra (Croatia; 5 November 1997)
Biggest defeat
Croatia 0–7 Turkey (Antaly, Turkey; 22 November 1994)
U-19 European Championship
Appearances	5 (first in 1998)
Best result	Third place (1998, 2010)
Website	hns-cff.hr

The Croatia national under-19 football team represents Croatia in international football matches for players aged 19 or under. It is governed by the Croatian Football Federation, the governing body for football in Croatia. It is a member of UEFA in Europe and FIFA in global competitions. The team's colours reference two national symbols: the Croatian checkerboard and the country's tricolour. They are colloquially referred to as the Mladi vatreni ('Young Blazers'). So far, the Mladi vatreni have qualified for five UEFA European Under-19 Championships, namely in 1998, 2000, 2010, 2012 and 2016. Croatia won third place twice (1996 and 2010), its greatest success in the tournament so far.

Recent results and fixtures

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

2023

China v Croatia

12 February 2023 (2023-02-12) Friendly tournament	China	0–2	Croatia	Poreč, Croatia
12:00		Report	Vrbančić 43' Kavelj 87'	Stadium: SRC Veli Jože

Croatia v Latvia

15 February 2023 (2023-02-15) Friendly tournament	Croatia	4–1	Latvia	Poreč, Croatia
12:00	Batur 39' (pen.) Antunović 77' (pen.) Rukavina 79', 83'	Report	Lizunovs 54'	Stadium: SRC Veli Jože

Czech Republic v Croatia

22 March 2023 (2023-03-22) 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 4	Czech Republic	3–1	Croatia	Fão, Portugal
12:00	Ambros  20' 32' Šín 56' Kričfaluši  61' Vojta  68' Šmiga 86'	Report	Gubijan  18' Matić 29' Rukavina  65' Šotiček  88'	Stadium: Complexo Desportivo CF Fão Attendance: 100 Referee: Oleksii Derevinskyi (Ukraine) Assistant referees: Oleksandr Berkut (Ukraine) Assistant referees: Andre Filipe Nogueira Dias (Portugal) Fourth official: Carlos Andre Fernandes Macedo (Portugal)

Croatia v Sweden

25 March 2023 (2023-03-25) 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 4	Croatia	1–1	Sweden	Vizela, Portugal
14:00	Rouhi  21' Swedberg 31' Bjorklund  51' Karlsson  73'	Report	Antunović 4' Lukanić  15' Capan  32' Katinić  77'	Stadium: Estádio do FC Vizela Attendance: 104 Referee: Evangelos Manouchos (Greece) Assistant referees: Konstantinos Nikolaidis (Greece) Assistant referees: Andre Filipe Nogueira Dias (Portugal) Fourth official: Carlos Andre Fernandes Macedo (Portugal)

Croatia v Portugal

28 March 2023 (2023-03-28) 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 4	Croatia	0–3	Portugal	Barcelos, Portugal
18:00	Babić  50' Krivak  74' Gubijan  90+1'	Report	Sá 15' Moreira 54' Justo  64' Nuno Félix  45+2' Hugo Félix 74'	Stadium: Cidade de Barcelos Attendance: 2012 Referee: Robert Jones (England) Assistant referees: Wade Smith (England) Assistant referees: Konstantinos Nikolaidis (Greece) Fourth official: Evangelos Manouchos (Greece)

Slovakia v Croatia

6 September 2023 (2023-09-06) Friendly	Slovakia	3–1	Croatia	Dunajská Streda, Slovakia
16:30	Rýzek  42' Masaryk 44' Hranica 58' Zahradnik 90'		Vrbančić 4'	Stadium: MOL Aréna

Slovakia v Croatia

9 September 2023 (2023-09-09) Friendly	Slovakia	1–3	Croatia	Dunajská Streda, Slovakia
11:00	Holicek 60' Praženka  61' Zahradnik  67'		Gec 50', 52' Vrbančić  61' Koščević 85'	Stadium: MOL Aréna

Croatia v Estonia

11 October 2023 (2023-10-11) Friendly tournament	Croatia	2–2	Estonia	Zaprešić, Croatia
12:30	Matković 6', 18' Vrbančić  41'	Report	Cekredzi 32', 60' Hoim  36' Kolobov  75' Kalimullin  81'	Stadium: Ivan Laljak-Ivić Stadium Referee: Mario Stanić (CRO)

Croatia v Greece

14 October 2023 (2023-10-14) Friendly tournament	Croatia	1–1	Greece	Zaprešić, Croatia
12:30	Vrbančić 87'	Report	Tzimas 32'	Stadium: Ivan Laljak-Ivić Stadium

Croatia v Bulgaria

17 October 2023 (2023-10-17) Friendly tournament	Croatia	3–4	Bulgaria	Zaprešić, Croatia
11:00	Brajković 37' Vrbančić 54' Kapulica 90+9' (pen.)	Report	Bachev 22' Marinov 61' (pen.), 66' (pen.) Bozhev  90+7'	Stadium: Ivan Laljak-Ivić Stadium

Armenia v Croatia

15 November 2023 (2023-11-15) 2024 Euro qualif Gr 9	Armenia	1–2	Croatia	Rovinj, Croatia
12:30	Vardanyan 22' Hovhannisyan  79' Hakobyan  86'	Report	Markanović  54' Vrbančić 66', 71'	Stadium: Valbruna Referee: Vitālijs Spasjoņņikovs (LVA) Assistant referees: Raimonds Tatriks (LVA) Assistant referees: Turkka Valjakka (FIN) Fourth official: Mohammed Al-emara (FIN)

Croatia v Faroe Islands

18 November 2023 (2023-11-18) 2024 Euro qualif Gr 9	Croatia	2–0	Faroe Islands	Rovinj, Croatia
12:30	Travaglia  37' Košćević 50' Vrbančić 52'	Report	Josephsen  39' Atlason  44'	Stadium: Valbruna Referee: Vitālijs Spasjoņņikovs (LVA) Assistant referees: Raimonds Tatriks (LVA) Assistant referees: René Risum (DEN) Fourth official: Jakob Alexander Sundberg (DEN)

Croatia v Israel

21 November 2023 (2023-11-21) 2024 Euro qualif Gr 9	Croatia	0–0	Israel	Rovinj, Croatia
12:30	Čaić  58' Begonja  75'	Report	Turgeman  39' Kassa  79' Azo  88'	Stadium: Valbruna Referee: Jakob Alexander Sundberg (DEN) Assistant referees: René Risum (DEN) Assistant referees: Raimonds Tatriks (LVA) Fourth official: Vitālijs Spasjoņņikovs (LVA)

2024

Croatia v Germany

20 March 2024 (2024-03-20) 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 6

Croatia

v

Germany

Turkey v Croatia

23 March 2024 (2024-03-23) 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 6

Turkey

v

Croatia

Romania v Croatia

26 March 2024 (2024-03-26) 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 6

Romania

v

Croatia

Players

Current squad

• The following players were called up for the 2024 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification.
• Match dates: 20–26 March 2024
• Opposition: Germany, Turkey and Romania
• Caps and goals correct as of: 16 February 2024, after the match against Greece

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Borna Buljan	(2005-04-05) 5 April 2005	3	0	Hajduk Split
12	1GK	Jan Hlapčić	(2006-04-07) 7 April 2006	3	0	Osijek
2	2DF	Luka Hodak	(2006-06-10) 10 June 2006	5	0	Hajduk Split
4	2DF	Ivan Cvetko	(2005-11-23) 23 November 2005	3	0	Dinamo Zagreb
13	2DF	Krešimir Vrbanac	(2005-04-24) 24 April 2005	2	0	Osijek
3	2DF	Patrik Majdandžić	(2005-03-31) 31 March 2005	0	0	Empoli
14	2DF	Luka Vušković	(2007-02-24) 24 February 2007	3	0	Radomiak Radom
15	2DF	Ante Utrobičić	(2006-07-12) 12 July 2006	0	0	Karlovac
19	3MF	Ante Kavelj	(2005-08-26) 26 August 2005	4	0	Hajduk Split
5	3MF	Vito Čaić	(2005-04-01) 1 April 2005	2	0	Velež Mostar
8	3MF	Borna Panić	(2005-01-22) 22 January 2005	5	0	Rudar Velenje
10	3MF	Luka Vrbančić	(2005-07-04) 4 July 2005	5	4	Dinamo Zagreb
6	3MF	Branko Pavić	(2006-11-07) 7 November 2006	1	0	Dinamo Zagreb
11	3MF	Roko Brajković	(2005-07-03) 3 July 2005	11	5	Hajduk Split
16	4FW	Noel Jakac	(2006-02-11) 11 February 2006	2	0	Rijeka
18	4FW	Noah Pesch	(2005-05-18) 18 May 2005	2	0	Bayer Leverkusen
9	4FW	Zlatan Koščević	(2005-02-12) 12 February 2005	3	1	Dinamo Zagreb
17	4FW	Toni Majić	(2005-02-12) 12 February 2005	1	0	Dinamo Zagreb
20	4FW	Anton Matković	(2006-02-19) 19 February 2006	5	0	Osijek
7	4FW	Ivan Canjuga	(2005-11-30) 30 November 2005	0	0	Lokomotiva

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up within the last twelve months and remain eligible for future selections.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Eugen Ciban	(2005-03-04) 4 March 2005	0	0	Rudeš	v. Estonia, 11 October 2023
GK	Dorian Klarin	(2005-01-02) 2 January 2005	1	0	Dinamo Zagreb	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
DF	Viktor Damjanić	(2005-11-03) 3 November 2005	3	0	Lokomotiva Zagreb	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
DF	Borna Graonić	(2005-01-31) 31 January 2005	1	0	Dugopolje	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
DF	Domagoj Begonja	(2005-06-07) 7 June 2005	4	0	Hajduk Split	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
DF	Rocco Žiković	(2005-01-21) 21 January 2005	4	0	FC Liefering	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
DF	Vito Težak	(2005-03-31) 31 March 2005	2	0	Varaždin	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
DF	Filip Markanović	(2005-01-13) 13 January 2005	2	0	Cibalia	v. Israel, 21 November 2023
DF	Fran Pavlek	(2005-04-03) 3 April 2005	2	0	Jarun	v. Israel, 21 November 2023
DF	Filip Krušelj	(2005-03-30) 30 March 2005	1	0	Slaven Belupo	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
DF	Matija Ruškovački	(2005-05-24) 24 May 2005	0	0	Rogaška	v. Estonia, 11 October 2023
DF	Roko Perković	(2005-05-08) 8 May 2005	0	0	Osijek	v. Estonia, 11 October 2023
MF	Oliver Lukić	(2006-09-22) 22 September 2006	1	1	FC Liefering	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
MF	Luka Kapulica	(2005-01-18) 18 January 2005	2	0	Gorica	v. Israel, 21 November 2023
MF	Marin Žgomba	(2005-05-30) 30 May 2005	1	0	Istra 1961	v. Latvia, 15 February 2023
MF	Lovro Zvonarek	(2005-05-08) 8 May 2005	5	3	Bayern Munich	v. Estonia, 11 October 2023
MF	Marin Prekodravac	(2005-03-03) 3 March 2005	0	0	Osijek	v. Estonia, 11 October 2023
MF	Marin Krešić	(2005-10-14) 14 October 2005	1	0	Mladost Ždralovi	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
MF	Luka Juričić	(2005-08-23) 23 August 2005	1	0	Puskás Akadémia	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
MF	Noa Skoko	(2006-01-12) 12 January 2006	2	0	Hajduk Split	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
MF	Fabijan Krivak	(2005-02-24) 24 February 2005	7	0	Lokomotiva Zagreb	v. Estonia, 11 October 2023
FW	Matej Momčilovski	(2005-01-18) 18 January 2005	0	0	Triglav Kranj	v. Slovakia, 9 September 2023
FW	Vilim Gec	(2005-01-07) 7 January 2005	3	0	Dinamo Zagreb	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
FW	Filip Živković	(2006-08-01) 1 August 2006	2	0	Osijek	v. Greece, 16 February 2024
FW	Lorenzo Travaglia	(2005-01-12) 12 January 2005	4	0	Istra	v. Israel, 21 November 2023

Competitive record

  Champions  
  Runners-up  
  Third place  
  Fourth place  
  Tournament played fully or partially on home soil  

Prior to 1990, Croatian players played for the Yugoslavia Under-18 team. Although the Croatian team was formed in the early 1990s after the breakup of Yugoslavia, the Under-18 team had to wait for UEFA to officially accept Croatian Football Federation's membership bid in order to be included in UEFA-governed competitions. Croatia's membership was accepted in June 1993 and the first continental competition Croatia's under-18 team took part in was the qualification for the 1994 European Under-18 Championship. In 2001 UEFA changed the player eligibility dates and from 2002 onwards the continental championship is known as UEFA European Under-19 Championship. The tournament is held every year and serves as the qualifying tournament for FIFA U-20 World Cup which is held every two years.

Croatia's Under-18/19 team managed to qualify for the European championship on four occasions. In 1998 and 2010 they won third place which earned them a place at the 1999 FIFA World Youth Championship and 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup.

UEFA European Under-19 Championship record

UEFA European Under-19 Championship record											Qualifications record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad		GP	W	D	L	GF	GA	Year
1948	Part of Yugoslavia
1949
1950
1951
1952
1953
1954
1955
1956
1957
1958
1959
1960
1961
1962
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976
1977
1978
1979
1980
1981
1982
1983
1984
1986
1988
1990
1992	Not a UEFA member
1993
1994	Did not qualify										4	2	1	1	12	4	1994
1995											2	0	0	2	1	9	1995
1996											2	1	0	1	3	4	1996
1997											4	2	1	1	7	1	1997
1998	Third place	3/8	4	2	1	1	8	5	Squad		4	3	1	0	14	1	1998
1999	Did not qualify										5	4	0	1	16	8	1999
2000	Group stage	8/8	3	0	0	3	3	8	Squad		4	4	0	0	10	1	2000
2001	Did not qualify										2	1	0	1	2	3	2001
2002											3	2	0	1	6	4	2002
2003											3	1	1	1	2	2	2003
2004											6	5	0	1	13	4	2004
2005											6	2	1	3	11	10	2005
2006											6	3	2	1	13	6	2006	2006 elite
2007											6	3	3	0	13	6	2007	2007 elite
2008											6	3	2	1	11	7	2008	2008 elite
2009											3	1	1	1	7	6	2009	2009 elite
2010	Third place	3/8	4	1	1	2	7	4	Squad		6	6	0	0	12	2	2010	2010 elite
2011	Did not qualify										6	2	1	3	8	10	2011	2011 elite
2012	Group stage	6/8	3	1	1	1	4	2	Squad		6	4	2	0	15	5	2012	2012 elite
2013	Did not qualify										6	3	3	0	15	5	2013	2013 elite
2014										3	1	1	1	9	5	2014	2014 elite
2015										6	2	3	1	8	6	2015
2016	Group stage	8/8	3	0	0	3	2	7	Squad	6	5	1	0	13	2	2016
2017	Did not qualify									6	4	1	1	14	3	2017
2018										3	1	1	1	5	5	2018
2019										6	2	2	2	10	9	2019
2020	Tournament and elite qualifying round cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic									3	2	1	0	5	2	2020
2021	Tournament and qualifying round cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
2022	Did not qualify									6	3	1	2	13	5	2022
2023										6	2	1	3	12	9	2023
2024	To be determined									3	2	1	0	4	1	2024
2025										To be determined						2025
2026																2026
2027																2027
Total	Third place	5/70	17	4	3	10	24	26		138	76	32	30	284	145

Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out; correct as of 21 November 2023 after the match against Israel.

Matches
First match	Croatia 2–5 Republic of Ireland (Ayia Napa, Cyprus; 19 July 1998)
Biggest win	Portugal 0–5 Croatia (Bayeux, France; 24 July 2010)
Biggest defeat	Croatia 2–5 Republic of Ireland (Ayia Napa, Cyprus; 19 July 1998)
	Netherlands 3–0 Croatia (Ludwigsburg, Germany; 17 July 2000)

Head-to-head record

Key

  More wins than losses

  As many wins as losses

  Fewer wins than losses

Correct as of 21 November 2023, after the match against Israel.

Opponent	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win %
Albania	3	2	0	1	3	1	+2	066.67
Andorra	1	1	0	0	10	0	+10	100.00
Armenia	2	2	0	0	4	1	+3	100.00
Australia	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2	100.00
Austria	9	4	3	2	13	8	+5	044.44
Azerbaijan	6	2	3	1	14	6	+8	033.33
Belarus	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1	100.00
Belgium	6	2	2	2	11	8	+3	033.33
Bosnia and Herzegovina	12	6	6	0	21	7	+14	050.00
Brazil	2	0	0	2	1	5	−4	000.00
Bulgaria	5	3	1	1	10	6	+4	060.00
China	5	4	0	1	8	3	+5	080.00
Cyprus	3	2	1	0	9	2	+7	066.67
Czech Republic	12	1	4	7	17	27	−10	008.33
Denmark	1	0	0	1	2	5	−3	000.00
England	6	1	2	3	8	10	−2	016.67
Estonia	6	3	1	2	9	7	+2	050.00
Faroe Islands	4	3	1	0	15	2	+13	075.00
Finland	4	3	1	0	9	5	+4	075.00
France	9	0	2	7	4	17	−13	000.00
Georgia	5	3	0	2	7	4	+3	060.00
Germany	5	0	1	4	7	14	−7	000.00
Gibraltar	2	2	0	0	14	0	+14	100.00
Greece	3	0	3	0	4	4	+0	000.00
Hungary	16	7	6	3	31	19	+12	043.75
Iceland	6	5	1	0	17	7	+10	083.33
India	1	1	0	0	5	0	+5	100.00
Indonesia	1	1	0	0	7	1	+6	100.00
Israel	3	2	1	0	5	0	+5	066.67
Italy	11	4	2	5	14	17	−3	036.36
Japan	4	2	0	2	5	11	−6	050.00
Kazakhstan	3	3	0	0	8	0	+8	100.00
Latvia	4	3	1	0	10	3	+7	075.00
Liechtenstein	1	1	0	0	6	0	+6	100.00
Lithuania	2	2	0	0	4	1	+3	100.00
Macedonia	4	2	2	0	10	3	+7	050.00
Malta	4	4	0	0	18	1	+17	100.00
Mexico	1	0	0	1	0	1	−1	000.00
Montenegro	6	4	1	1	10	4	+6	066.67
Moldova	2	2	0	0	7	0	+7	100.00
Netherlands	5	1	2	2	3	6	−3	020.00
New Zealand	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1	100.00
Northern Ireland	1	1	0	0	2	1	+1	100.00
Norway	3	1	0	2	3	5	−2	033.33
Philippines	1	1	0	0	9	0	+9	100.00
Poland	5	2	0	3	5	4	+1	040.00
Portugal	7	1	1	5	8	10	−2	014.29
Qatar	5	3	0	2	12	2	+10	060.00
Romania	5	2	1	2	7	8	−1	040.00
Russia	3	1	2	0	5	3	+2	033.33
San Marino	2	2	0	0	11	1	+10	100.00
Saudi Arabia	1	1	0	0	4	3	+1	100.00
Scotland	5	3	2	0	8	2	+6	060.00
Serbia	7	2	2	3	9	11	−2	028.57
Slovakia	17	10	5	2	36	19	+17	058.82
Slovenia	27	17	4	6	43	26	+17	062.96
South Korea	1	0	1	0	1	1	+0	000.00
Spain	4	1	1	2	4	7	−3	025.00
Sweden	6	1	5	0	8	6	+2	016.67
Switzerland	7	2	4	1	7	5	+2	028.57
Turkey	10	2	4	4	8	18	−10	020.00
Ukraine	1	0	0	1	1	2	−1	000.00
United States	1	0	0	1	3	4	−1	000.00
Uzbekistan	1	0	1	0	1	1	+0	000.00
Wales	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2	100.00
65 teams played	309	145	80	84	574	357	+217	046.93

See also

• Croatia national football team
• Croatia national football B team
• Croatia national under-23 football team
• Croatia national under-21 football team
• Croatia national under-20 football team
• Croatia national under-18 football team
• Croatia national under-17 football team
• Croatia national under-16 football team
• Croatia national under-15 football team
• Croatia women's national football team
• Croatia women's national under-19 football team
• Croatia women's national under-17 football team
• Croatia women's national under-15 football team

External links

• European Under-19 Championship official website at UEFA.com
• Youth team news at the Croatian FA official website (in Croatian)
• Appearance stats for all youth selections at the Croatian FA official website (in Croatian)