Soccer, a passionate sport
Croatian soccer will always hold a special place in the hearts of French fans. In 1998, the team with the red and white chequered flag reached the semi-finals! They came close to blocking the path of the future world champions, opening the scoring before losing 2-1 thanks to Lilian Thuram's famous double. Davor Šuker was voted top scorer at the World Cup and went on to win the bronze medal with the Croatian national team.
In 2018, at the 21st World Cup, the Croatian national team finally reached the final of a major tournament, facing Kylian Mbappé and Paul Pogba's France. It's already a consecration for Ivan Rakitić's generation! But the memory of the 1998 semi-final defeat is still fresh in the minds of fans... This time, Luka Modrić and his team-mates win in the Round of 8, on penalties against Denmark, and in the quarter-final against Russia. In the semi-finals, Croatia beat England (2-1) but lost to France (4-2) after a penalty was awarded to France following a blatant foul by a Croatian player. The team was considered by many commentators to be the most entertaining at the 2018 World Cup. As a consolation prize, Luka Modrić, the national team captain and Real Madrid midfielder, was voted best player of the tournament.
The World Cup runners-up return home as heroes on July 16. Red carpet on the tarmac and double-decker bus for the players, welcomed by a jubilant crowd in Ban Jelačić square in Zagreb.
On December 17, 2022, after the victory over Morocco (2-1) in the match for3rd place at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, it's party time again in Zagreb, where thousands of fans watch the match on a giant screen set up in the square. After3rd place in 1998 and the 2018 final in Russia, lost to France, this is the third time Croatia has finished on the podium of a World Cup since its independence in 1991. It is the only event to date to attract such a large crowd, after the visit of Pope John Paul II in 1994. The vast majority of Croatian national team players manage to play for major European clubs, with Croatian teams such as Hajduk-Split and Dinamo-Zagreb usually playing at home. The atmosphere in their respective stadiums is always pretty hot. In December 2018, Luka Modrić, the national team captain and Real Madrid midfielder, won the Ballon d'Or in Paris ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo and Antoine Griezmann.
For the 2023-2024 season, a total of ten teams are taking part in the championship. Four of these clubs have never left the championship since it was founded in 1992: Dinamo Zagreb, Haiduk Split, NK Osijek and HNK Rijeka.
Handball, basketball and water polo
Croatian men's handball has also made a name for itself on the international scene. Heir to the former Yugoslavia, which had set this discipline as its model, the team was double Olympic champion (1996 and 2004), European vice-champions in 2008 and 2010 and world champions in 2003, but has yet to win a European title. In recent years, during major competitions, Croatia has often faced a French team, led in particular by the brothers Luka and Nikola Karabatić, who are of... Croatian origin.
In basketball, after the break-up of Yugoslavia, Croatia enjoyed some great years. With Toni Kukoč, the young team reached the final of the Barcelona Olympic Games (1992), only to be beaten by Michael Jordan's American team. Since then, the more discreet selection has taken part in three Olympics, two World Championships and ten European Championships, including the 2022 event, where it reached the Round of 8 before losing (94-86) to Finland. Its iconic players, Dražen Petrović and Mirko Novosel, are enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as well as the International Basketball Federation (FIBA Europe).
Where Croatia excels is in water polo. After the war, the championship was relaunched in 2000-2001, including the creation of a women's cup. The national team won silver medals at the Atlanta (1996) and Rio de Janeiro (2016) Olympic Games, gold at the 2007 World Championships and gold at the 2012 Olympic Games. In September 2022, at the European Men's Championships, the Croatian pool will win the 35th edition of the event.
Individual sports, tennis, skiing and solo exploits
In individual sports, many Croatians stand out. In tennis, the country has always produced excellent players, Goran Ivanišević in the 1990s, a Wimbledon winner and world No. 2 in 1994. On November 25, 2018, the Croatian tennis team won the Davis Cup final against France (3-1), repeating the feat of 2005 against Slovakia (3-2). Led by Marin Čilić and Borna Ćorić, the French team (Tsonga, Chardy and Pouille) folded under the Croatian racket. In 2021, Croatia reached the semi-finals against Serbia, but lost to Russia (2-0) in the final; in 2022, they lost to the Australians in the final; in 2023, they finished4th in the Nations ranking.
In winter sports, Croatians are passionate about downhill skiing. The Kostelić family, Ivica, the brother, Janica, the sister, are the most famous names in this discipline. Ivica, now a skipper, distinguished himself in slalom (world champion in 2003, Crystal Globe winner in 2002) and silver medals at the Winter Olympics (2006, 2010, 2014). Janica was the queen of the Salt Lake City Olympics (2002), winning the giant after the combined and slalom, as well as silver in the super-G. On her 20th birthday, Janica became the first skier to win three gold medals in the same Games. At the Turin Olympics (2006), she won gold in combined and silver in super-G, after winning three gold medals again at the 2005 World Championships in Bormio. Injuries forced her to retire in 2007 at the age of 25. In 2020, Filip Zubcić enters the Kostelić legend. At the Naeba giant slalom in Japan, he becomes the first Croatian to win a World Cup since 2005.
In the feat category, writer and photographer Davor Rostuhar is the first Croatian to complete a solo expedition to the South Pole without any assistance. The Zagreb native made a 1,163 km, 47-day solo journey before placing his country's flag in the ice on January 17, 2018. A book recounts this extraordinary adventure(Polar Dream: South Pole Expedition, ed. The Club for Expedition and Culture, 2018).
For summer Olympic sports, Blanka Vlašić hoists the country onto the podiums. The Split native, a high jump specialist, was four-time world champion between 2007 and 2010, Olympic runner-up in 2008 and bronze medallist in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro. Now retired, she remains one of the world's top three performers, alongside Sweden's Kaisa Berggvist (2.08 m), just edged out by Bulgaria's Stepha Kostadinova (2.09 m).
Numerous outdoor sports and activities
In this sporty country, there's no shortage of outdoor activities. On land, you can set off, alone or accompanied, to discover often grandiose landscapes. Inland Croatia is a paradise for good walkers. You can organize your own tours in Plitvice Lakes National Park, explore canyons in Paklenika National Park, go lynx-hunting in Risnjak National Park, take a trail ride in Premužić to the young bear refuge, plan a day or half-day on horseback, go trekking on foot or mountain bike, and so on. Although there is a Tour de Croatie, reserved for professionals, amateur cycling is gaining ground.
For climbers, the Paklenica Park is renowned for its beautiful climbing walls. The sunny climate means climbing can be enjoyed almost all year round - just check the weather forecast before you set off! Every spring, a major international competition is held here, the Big Wall Speed Climbing, which brings together climbers from all over the world. In the Omis region, you can climb cliffs in the Mount Biokovo nature park. Last but not least, a number of sites have been set up in Istria and the Adriatic islands for climbing and rock-climbing. For skiing, there are a number of slopes in the Papud mountains or near Zagreb (Sljeme). With its rivers and waterfalls in the national parks, Croatia is an ideal destination for sporting vacations. Anglers will love the rivers between Zadar and Split, the Zrmanja, Cetina and Gacka near Otočac, and between Senj and the Plitvice lakes. You can also spend a day fishing for trout or go on a no-kill trip along the banks of the Drave or Kupa rivers.
On the water and underwater!
The entire Croatian coastline offers a wide range of water activities, starting with swimming. The terrain? Numerous pebble beaches, a little less sandy, equipped pontoons, coves and miles of rocky coastline where you can relax and/or enjoy water sports (jet-skiing, sea kayaking, sailing, etc.).
Scuba diving also attracts holidaymakers. The rugged beauty of the Croatian coast and its 1,200 islands is a diver's paradise. The water is particularly blue and transparent, offering excellent visibility down to 30 m, and sea temperatures are very pleasant from May to October.
To the north and center of the coast, the sea is shallow, while after the Palagruža sill, the deep waters of the southern Adriatic basin begin. There are diving clubs all along the coast and on all the islands.
In national parks, diving is only permitted when accompanied by a diving school. One of the most popular spots is the Kornati National Park. In its clear waters, with just a mask and snorkel, you can come across protected species. Mljet, another mythical island to the south of Dubrovnik, further from the coast, is also a mecca for diving in the southern Adriatic. Here, too, you'll find numerous protected species in crystal-clear waters. You'll have to pay for a permit to enter these national parks, but it's well worth the experience, as is venturing into the wrecks that populate the Adriatic seabed. Some, dating back to ancient times, are still loaded with amphorae, as in Cavtat. Others were sunk during the Venetian invasion or during the fighting of the last wars of the 20th century. All are home to flora and fauna well worth the adventure!
