Croatia men's national handball team

Croatia
Information
Nickname2003–2009: Pakleni (Hellish)
2009–2023: Kauboji (Cowboys)
AssociationCroatian Handball Federation
CoachDagur Sigurðsson
Assistant coachValter Matošević
Denis Špoljarić
CaptainIvan Martinović
Most capsDomagoj Duvnjak (257)
Most goalsDomagoj Duvnjak (771)
Colours
1st
2nd
Results
Summer Olympics
Appearances6 (First in 1996)
Best result 1st (1996, 2004)
World Championship
Appearances16 (First in 1995)
Best result 1st (2003)
European Championship
Appearances17 (First in 1994)
Best result 2nd (2008, 2010, 2020)
Last updated on 14 January 2025.
Croatia men's national handball team
Medal record
Olympic Games
1996 Atlanta Team
2004 Athens Team
2012 London Team
World Championship
2003 Portugal
1995 Iceland
2005 Tunisia
2009 Croatia
2025 Croatia/Denmark/Norway
2013 Spain
European Championship
2008 Norway
2010 Austria
2020 Sweden/Austria/Norway
1994 Portugal
2012 Serbia
2016 Poland
2026 Denmark/Norway/Sweden
Mediterranean Games
1993 Languedoc-Rousillon
1997 Bari Team
2001 Tunis Team
2018 Tarragona Team
2005 Almería Team
2013 Mersin Team

The Croatia national handball team (Croatian: Hrvatska rukometna reprezentacija) represents Croatia at international handball competitions and is governed by the Croatian Handball Federation (HRS). Since their Independence in 1991 Croatia has won 16 medals at main international competitions, the biggest being winning the gold medal at the Olympic Games twice and one World Championship title, and played in the final of the European Championship three times.[1][2] The Croatian national team's victory at the 1996 Olympics is often credited as one of the biggest upsets in the history of handball.[3] The Croatian national team have also won a so-called "international double", winning the gold medal at the World Championship (2003) and the Olympics (2004).

History of handball in Croatia and Yugoslavia (1904–1991)

Handball in Austria-Hungary (1904–1918)

The word handball in the Croatian region was first used by Franjo Bučar in 1904 to describe the German game Schleuderball in the journal Sokol. The earliest documented forms of playing handball in these areas appear in 1911 at the gymnasium of Pazin, which is, among other things, due to the programs for education in Istria, as part of the then-Austrian coast, coming from the education center in Graz. At the time, handball was included in high school programs closing ceremony in Croatia. The type of handball was a form of Czech handball and was adopted by the Osijek and Vukovar students from Prague.[4]

Between the two world wars (1918–1941)

In the early beginnings of Croatian handball, venues played both field handball and handball. Students were mostly attracted to field handball as it was played on existing football fields, while handball was played on makeshift courts.[5] During the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, the first public handball match in the Croatian region and the wider neighborhood was played at a high school in Varaždin on 29 May 1930 under the guidance of physical education teacher Zvonimir Šuligoj. Since that game and until 1950, field handball was played exclusively in public in Croatia and Yugoslavia on football fields with eleven players on each side. The first handball courts in Yugoslavia was opened at a high school in Zagreb on 1 June 1935.[6]

The establishment of Croatian Handball Federation and the first Croatian national team (1941–1945)

At the beginning of World War II, the Kingdom of Yugoslavia disintegrated. Most of the territory inhabited by Croats became part of the newly formed Independent State of Croatia (NDH) on 10 April 1941. As part of the new state, the Croatian Handball Federation (HRS) was established for the first time in history on 2 October 1941 in Zagreb.[7] The place of foundation is recorded to be at the Croatian Sports home in Jurišićeva, Zagreb. HRS is the umbrella organization of handball in the ISC coordinated the work of a dozen clubs and until 1944 organized national championships. The first Croatian handball team was established shortly after the formation of the NDH, with the first practice-match training held on 12 October 1941 under the guidance of head coach Dragutin Pehe. The team's first and only international match was played on 14 June 1942 against Hungary in Budapest, where they lost 0:9. The field handball match was played in front of 30,000 spectators at the then-NEP Stadium (since 2002 Ferenc Puskás Stadium) and was a prelude to the meeting of the Croatian and Hungarian football teams.[8] Under the direction of the coach Ante Škrtić, the players for Croatia were Vlado Abramović, Irislav Dolenec, Žarko Galetović, Zvonko Leskovar, Todor Marinov, Viktor Medved, Krešo Pavlin, Vlado Šimanović, Stjepan Širić, Josip Žitnik, goalkeeper Branko Kraljand, who was considered the best Croatian player on the field, and reserve goalkeeper Zdenko Šurina. HRS stopped functioning in 1944 due to the world war.[9]

Handball in SFR Yugoslavia (1945–1991)

Main article: Yugoslavia men's national handball team

Following the end of World War II in 1945, the territory of the Independent State of Croatia was included in the newly established SFR Yugoslavia and work immediately began on rebuilding the handball sport in Yugoslavia. That same year, the Committee for handball Gymnastics Association Croatian was founded, while the Committee for handball Gymnastics Association of Yugoslavia was established in May 1948. HRS was restored on 19 December 1948, in which, in accordance with the national policy of the new Yugoslav state, the name was changed to the Croatian Handball Association (RSH). Handball Federation of Yugoslavia (RSJ) was established on 17 December 1949 in Belgrade by pooling national and provincial associations, and it became a member of the International Handball Federation (IHF) in 1950.[10]

After the end of World War II, most field handball players of the NDH completed courses and became instructors or referees in handball. Some became members of the field handball national team of Yugoslavia and played in its first international match, played on 19 June 1950 at the stadium in Stadion Kranjčevićeva in Zagreb, against Belgium. Yugoslavia won 18:3 playing with nine players from Zagreb, one from Split and one from Sarajevo.[11]

Since the end of World War II and until the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1991, the best Croatian handball players in field and team handball were selected to play for the national team of Yugoslavia. As part of the national team, Croatian players competed at 17 major competitions and won seven medals, including two Olympic gold medals and one World Championship gold medal. During this period, the team also won five gold medals in five appearances at the Mediterranean Games (1967, 1975, 1979, 1983 and 1991), two gold and one bronze medal at the World Cups held in 1971, 1974 and 1984 in Sweden, two bronze medals at the handball Super League held in 1981 and 1983 in Germany, and a silver medal at the 1990 Goodwill Games in Seattle.

At the World Junior Championship in 1987 in Rijeka, a nucleus generation of players that would define the 1990s for the Croatian national team came to light. Alvaro Načinović, Iztok Puc, Vladimir Jelčić and others were instrumental in helping Yugoslavia win the championship, and their talent and knowledge were later incorporated as seniors in the Croatian national team's first success after independence of the country.[12]

Place Croatians in the team of Yugoslavia[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33] Croatian head coaches
10th place at WC 1952 Irislav Dolenec (player) Ivan Snoj / Irislav Dolenec
5th place at WC 1955. Irislav Dolenec (player), Stjepan Korbar Ivan Snoj / Irislav Dolenec
8th place at WC 1958 Jerolim Karadža, Lovro Manestar, Božidar Peter, Zlatko Šimenc?, Ivan Špoljarić Ivan Snoj
9th place at SP 1961. Anton Bašić, Ivan Đuranec, Zvonko Jandroković, Jerolim Karadža, Božidar Peter,[34] Zlatko Šimenc? Ivan Snoj
6th place at WC 1964 Vojislav Bjegović, Vinko Dekaris, Ivan Đuranec, Lujo Györy, Jerolim Karadža, Zvonko Kocijan, Josip Milković, Vladimir Vićan, Albin Vidović, Zlatko Žagmešter Ivan Snoj
7th place at WC 1967 Vinko Dekaris, Ivan Đuranec, Hrvoje Horvat, Jerolim Karadža, Branko Klišanin, Josip Milković, Miroslav Pribanić, Dobrivoje Selec, Ninoslav Tomašić, Ivan Uremović,[35] Vladimir Vićan Ivan Snoj / Irislav Dolenec
Gold medal at MG 1967 Hrvoje Horvat, Miroslav Klišanin, Josip Milković, Ivan Uremović, Albin Vidović Ivan Snoj / Vlado Štencl
Bronze medal at WC 1970 Hrvoje Horvat, Marijan Jakšeković, Dragutin Mervar, Josip Milković, Miroslav Pribanić, Zlatko Žagmešter Ivan Snoj / Vlado Štencl
Gold medal at WC 1971 Ivan Snoj
Gold medal at OG 1972 Hrvoje Horvat, Zdravko Miljak, Miroslav Pribanić, Dobrivoje Selec, Albin Vidović, Zdenko Zorko Ivan Snoj / Vlado Štencl
Bronze medal at WC 1974 Hrvoje Horvat, Zdravko Miljak, Željko Nimš, Zvonimir Serdarušić, Zdenko Zorko Ivan Snoj / Josip Milković
Gold medal at WC 1974 Ivan Snoj
Gold medal at MG 1975 Zdravko Miljak, Željko Nimš, Miroslav Pribanić, Zvonimir Serdarušić, Zdenko Zorko Ivan Snoj
5th place at OG 1976 Hrvoje Horvat, Zdravko Miljak, Željko Nimš, Zvonimir Serdarušić, Zdenko Zorko Ivan Snoj / Pero Janjić
5th place at WC 1978[36] Hrvoje Horvat, Zdravko Miljak, Željko Nimš, Zvonimir Serdarušić,[37] Željko Vidaković, Zdenko Zorko Ivan Snoj / Zdravko Malić
Gold medal at MG 1979 Pavle Jurina, Željko Vidaković, Zdravko Zovko, Željko Zovko
6th place OG 1980 Pavle Jurina, Stjepan Obran
Bronze medal SC 1981
Silver medal at WC 1982 Mirko Bašić, Pavle Jurina, Stjepan Obran, Zdravko Zovko
Bronze medal SC 1983
Gold medal at MG 1983 Mirko Bašić, Pavle Jurina, Stjepan Obran, Željko Vidaković, Zdravko Zovko
Bronze medal at SC 1984
Gold medal at OG 1984 Mirko Bašić, Pavle Jurina, Zdravko Zovko
Gold medal at WC 1986 Mirko Bašić, Zlatko Saračević
Bronze medal at OG 1988 Mirko Bašić, Boris Jarak, Alvaro Načinović, Goran Perkovac, Iztok Puc, Zlatko Saračević, Irfan Smajlagić
4th place at WC 1990[38][39] Mirko Bašić, Nenad Kljaić, Iztok Puc, Zlatko Saračević, Irfan Smajlagić, Ratko Tomljanović
Silver medal at GG 1990[40][41] Patrik Ćavar, Bruno Gudelj, Nenad Kljaić
Gold medal at MG 1991 Tomislav Farkaš, Valter Matošević

Modern Croatia national handball team (1991–present)

Official formation and first competitions (1991–1996)

On 30 May 1990, Croatia began the process of creating the independent state, and soon established the modern Croatian handball team. The first international match of the Croatian handball team was played on 14 January 1991 in Zagreb, in Kutija Šibica. It was a friendly match with Japan which ended in a draw 23:23. The team was coached by Josip Milković with assistant coach Lino Červar and the players were Patrik Čavar, Tonči Peribonio, Vlado Šola, Ivica Obrvan, Nenad Kljaić, Iztok Puc, Ratko Tomljanović, Bruno Gudelj, Željko Zovko, Stjepan Obran, Tomislav Farkaš, Robert Ipša, Ivo Glavinić and Goran Stojanović.[42] The dissolution of Yugoslavia that followed, Croatia gained full independence on 8 October 1991 the Croatian Handball Association (RSH) in 1992 restored the original name of the Croatian Handball Federation (HRS), and on 10 April 1992 became a member of the International Handball Federation (IHF), and 23 July 1992 members of the European Handball Federation (EHF).[43]

Taking fourth place at the 1990 World Championship in Czechoslovakia the Yugoslav national team was placed among the nine best teams of the tournament, which acquired them the right to participate in the upcoming 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona. Because of the war and the disintegration of Yugoslavia, this team was disqualified, and should it was supposed to be specified who will replaced them in the games. Since the Croatian Olympic Committee (COC) was provisionally recognized on 17 January 1992 by the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and since Croatia had already on 22 May 1992 become a member of the United Nations, Croatian handball players had conditions to perform at the Olympic Games in 1992.[44] This unfortunately did not happen. Although Croatia in terms of game was handball superpower, it was decided that Yugoslavia would be replaced by Iceland at the games as they finished tenth at the 1990 World Championship.[45] Adverse effects of certain officials in the IOC prevented even the option of maintaining an additional qualifying tournament like the one held for the Croatian basketball players. Croatia also missed the 1993 World Championship in Sweden, because the World Championship in 1990 was an elimination tournament for this championship.

The following years, in spite of the short history of the country brought the Croatian team very significant results in important competitions. Croatia won its first official competition at the Mediterranean Games in 1993 in Languedoc-Roussillon, France, Croatia won gold. At the first ever European Championship in 1994 held in Portugal the team was led by Zdravko Zovko they won their first medal at this first major international competition. The group stage ended with Croatia finishing behind then powerful Russians, but in front of the French, led by the famous Jackson Richardson. In the semi-finals, the Swedes were better and Croatia played the third place match and won in a dramatic match against Denmark. Sweden won the tournament demolishing the Russians in the final with 13 points.[46] A year later at the 1995 World Championships in Iceland Croatia relatively went easily from group stage to the quarter final where there was brought a rarely seen drama. Tunisia was defeated after penalty shootout. Then the team beat Egypt in the quarter finals and Sweden men's national handball team in the semi-finals. In the final they the French were too big an obstacle for Zovko guys won their first Croatian World Championship silver medal.[47] Sweden won the bronze defeating Germany. The next year at the European Championship in 1996 in Spain, Croatia, was led by Abas Arslanagić. Croatia lost took fifth place with victory over the Czech Republic where the match was led by Vladimir Nekić because Arslanagić quit after Croatia failed to enter the semi-finals. The championship was won by Russia.[48]

Gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics

On the second Olympics in which Croatian athletes performed under the banner of the Croatian flag and won their first gold medal. This was won by the athletes who were least expected to win it, handball players. They were sent off to Atlanta without hope, because at the European Championship in 1996 they had finished in a weak fifth place, and relations in the national team were bad. Coach Abas Arslanagić quit during the end of the European championship and the national handball selection was filled with confrontation and fights. 38 days before the Olympic Games, the team was taken over by coach Velimir Kljaić, whose statement: "Will go back swimming if we don't win a medal" no one took seriously.

Before the Olympics there were still problems. Preliminary matches didn't offer much optimism. A few days before the start of the handball tournament a friendly encounter with Algeria was not played to the end. The Croatian players left the court because the Algerians went too far with their abusive playing and hurt three players, Goran Perkovac, Slavko Goluža and Nenad Kljaić.[49]

The opening match of the Olympic games against Switzerland was tough. A victory was achieved in an already lost match. The Swiss led by as much as 6 goals, but then the goal was kept safe with a superb save from Venio Losert who just during the Olympic Games celebrated his 20th birthday. Making it a minimal victory, scoring in the 55th second before the end of the match, Patrik Ćavar brought a stellar victory.

The next two matches against Kuwait and hosts United States were easy victories. This was followed by the decisive encounter to enter the semi-finals, where there were only the two first-placed teams from each group.

The match with the then current Olympic and European champions Russia had a shocking finale. The Russians were leading by four points, but the Croats were arriving. The last minute was not for the faint of heart, but from the Russian roulette though the Croats came out as winners. One her of this triumph for the semi-finals was Valter Matošević. 40 seconds before the end of the match, when the result was 24:24, he defended a penalty shot from Torgovanov. Another hero was Božidar Jović, who just 3 seconds before the siren rang scored the winning goal.[50]

The last match in the group was with the Swedes. This was the one in which yoneou could choose an opponent in the semi-finals, but Kljun omitted Patrik Ćavar, Iztok Puc, Zlatko Saračević and Irfan Smajlagić from the match. Croatia was defeated with nine goals difference, but without their poker aces there wasn't much to expect. The defeat did not have larger significance, except that it took to save face. In the semi-finals they waited for the French who were World Champions. Croatian handball showed the best possible way to respond to defeat in the final of the 1995 World Championship in Iceland. Engaged and disciplined, Croatian players did a great job and ensured the silver medal the same brightness as did the water polo team.[51]

In the grand finale again Croatia faced the Swedes. In the semi-finals they defeated Spain, who later won the bronze medal. It was a great generation that only needed an Olympic gold medal to complete their collection. They probably hoped that Croatia was not with those who were missing against Sweden would not much raise the quality that they could be threatened. In the end their plans were foiled, and the Vikings failed to win. After starting 0: 1 followed by a brilliant game from the players Kljaić chose and the series of 6:1. The defense was solid and impenetrable and the attack varied and deadly. Perkovac great led his boys and Božidar Jović was the revelation of the tournament. Worried only in the final Zlatko Saračević was not playing properly, but Kljaić brought the perfect replacement, Zoran Mikulić. Although the Croatians twice led with seven goals difference, the second half offered drama. Swedes switched to defense 4–2 which created big problems. Decreased the difference and 6:30 minutes before the end came at just hit behind. Croatian handball players still in those crucial minutes they had never trembled hands.[52]

Thirty seconds before the end of the line player Nenad Kljaić scored a crucial goal for the final 27:26 and brought a glorious victory. With the sound of sirens was created indescribable celebration and parquet Georgia Dome in front of 25,000 visitors in the hall and millions of TV viewers, which is today known caterpillar gold handball. It was the biggest win in the history of Croatian sport. The handball players were not yet aware of this gold they had placed around his neck President of the Croatian Olympic Committee Antun Vrdoljak, who previously predicted 6 Atlanta medal and otherwise announced "As running from the day he was born" at Zagreb's main square. Still not running, but the handball players after returning from Atlanta to thousands of fans being greeted at the airport and on Jelačić Square. And they did the famous caterpillar crawl.[53]

Position Players
Goalkeepers Valter Matošević, Venio Losert
Back players Zlatko Saračević, Goran Perkovac, Iztok Puc, Zoran Mikulić, Slavko Goluža, Bruno Gudelj, Valner Franković
Line players Nenad Kljaić, Alvaro Načinović, Božidar Jović
Wing players Irfan Smajlagić, Patrik Ćavar, Vladimir Šujster, Vladimir Jelčić
Coaching staff Velimir Kljaić (Head coach), Milan Rončević (assistant and fitness coach), Zdenko Zorko (GK coach), Stanislav Peharec (Somatoped), Damir Suman (kinesiotherapists), Vladimir Nekić (tehniko), Josip Guberina (director)

A series of poor results (1996–2002)

After winning the Olympic gold medal on 4 August 1996 it was followed by a slow decline in the Croatian national team and the change of generations in which the handball players were far from winning a medal. It started when Croatia was knocked-out in the round of 16 of the World Championships. In Japan in 1997, Croatia was knocked out by Spain 31:25 and was ranked in 13th place. In Egypt 1999 they were knocked-out by Yugoslavia 30:23 leaving Croatia in 10th place. In France 2001 the national team would lose in the next round after two extra time (4 × 5 minutes) stopped Ukraine 37:34 (29: 29/33: 33) finishing in 9th place. At the European Championships in 1998, 2000 and 2002 finished in 8th, 6th and 16th place. Croatia in 2000 hosted the European Championship, they had high expectations from this tournament but they weren't fulfilled. After the defeat from Slovenia in the match for fifth place Croatia took only 6th place and failed to qualify for the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney. The national team is also lost its ability to defend the gold from Atlanta in Sydney.

World Champions and Olympic Winners

Once the team reached bottom with their results, being ranked last or in 16th place at the 2002 European Championship, in March 2002 the Federation entrusted Lino Červar and with him the team that suffered a seven-year drought medal in two years was created into the world champions and Olympic winners. In the period between these two gold medals Croatia is still ranked 4th place at the European Championships in 2004 in Slovenia. With Červar in charge Croatia would be at the top of the handball world.[54]

With the arrival of Lino Červar and a maturing exceptionally talented new generation including a young Ivano Balić, the revival of the national team culminated at the 2003 World Championship. The start of the competition was disastrous. Croatia lost in their first match to Argentina who was at the time a punching for serious national teams in official competitions. Although the first half led with 5 goals, but 14 minutes before the end of the match conceded 6 goals. At the end of the match, Croatian handball players fired five successive attacks, and Mirza Džomba 20 seconds before the end missed the equalizer. How Croatian players badly played that match was proven by the fact they missed 6 penalty shots. During halftime of the second match against another underdog Saudi Arabia Croatia was losing with 2 differences and was playing desperately. Yet the team found strength to win this match.[55] The turning point was marvelous – the group's dramatic victories in the end against giants Russia, France and Hungary securing first place to the second part where the Croats were convincing against Egypt and Denmark. In semi-finals the match went into overtime (4 × 5 minutes) defeating the Spaniards 39:37 (26: 26/31: 31) and in the grand final they outscored Germany 34:31 and won their first title of world champions and wrote surely one of the most beautiful story's in the history of Croatian sport.[56]

Position Players
Goalkeepers Vlado Šola, Valter Matošević, Mario Kelentrić
Back players Petar Metličić, Ivano Balić, Blaženko Lacković, Slavko Goluža, Tonči Valčić
Line players Božidar Jović, Renato Sulić, Igor Vori
Wing players Mirza Džomba, Nikša Kaleb, Vedran Zrnić, Goran Šprem
Defensive players Denis Špoljarić, Davor Dominiković
Coaching staff[57] Lino Červar (Head coach), Irfan Smajlagić (Assistant coach), Mirko Bašić (GK coach), Josip Feldbauer (Doctor), Milorad Sakradžija (Fizioterapist), Antun Arić (Fizioterapist), Ivica Udovičić (tehniko), Ratko Balenović (Director)

In January 2004 Croatia played at the 2004 European Championship in Slovenia. They got to the semi-finals where they were knocked out by the hosts 25:27. They finished in fourth place losing the third place match to Denmark 27:31.

In Summer 2004 the Olympics were held in Athens. The national team continued its dominating play and were undefeated in all eight matches played. They defeated Iceland, Slovenia, South Korea, Russia, Spain, Greece and Hungary before getting to the final. In a dramatic final Croatia defeated Germany 26–24 and with the title of world champions they won the Olympic gold. In the last 5 minutes of the match went a goal ahead for Croatia, and then Nikša Kaleb who had not scored no goal with 3 consecutive goals sealed a great victory. The gold was an even greater success considering the fact that Croatia traveled to Athens without their best line player Renato Sulić who was recovering from a car accident, without important defense player Tonči Valčić and without Patrik Ćavar who was ill.[58]

Position Players
Goalkeepers Vlado Šola, Venio Losert, Valter Matošević
Back players Petar Metličić, Ivano Balić, Blaženko Lacković, Slavko Goluža, Drago Vuković
Line players Igor Vori
Wing players Mirza Džomba, Nikša Kaleb, Vedran Zrnić, Goran Šprem
Defensive players Denis Špoljarić, Davor Dominiković
Coaching staff[59] Lino Červar (Head coach), Irfan Smajlagić (Assistant coach), Zdenko Zorko (GK coach), Miljenko Rak (Fitness coach), Milorad Sakradžija (Fizioterapist), Josip Feldbauer (Doctor), Stanislav Peharec (Somatoped), Davor Urek (Tehniko), Ivica Udovičić (Director)

Continuation of the Červar Era (2005–2010)

After excellent results at the 2003 World Championship and the 2004 Olympics, Croatia was considered one of the candidates for the title at the 2005 World Championship in Tunisia. As in previous years, the team once again showed its quality and reached the semi-finals with little difficulty. An excellent semi-final performance against traditional customers France earned Croatia a place in the final and a duel against the then very strong Spain. Although an uncertain match was expected, Spain surprisingly easily and convincingly won the title, scoring as many as 40 goals against Croatia. The final 6 difference hides the fact that the Spanish had a lead of as much as +13 with fourteen minutes to go.

At the 2006 European Championship in Switzerland, the Croatian national team again reached the semi-finals. Unfortunately, they were denied a place in the final by the new great generation of French handball, for whom this was their first major competition. In the match for the bronze medal, the Danish team was more motivated than Croatia, leaving Croatia without a medal.

At the 2007 World Championship in Germany, the Croatian handball team won their first seven games, and then another great French team was defeated in the quarterfinals. In an uncertain match with few goals, the quality of the French defense was decisive. After that, Croatia defeated Spain and Russia in the playoff for 5th to 8th place, and with nine wins and one loss, won 5th place. Many journalists and handball players emphasized that Croatia played the best and most attractive handball of all the participating teams. In the semifinals, the French fell into the German home court trap and lost 32:31 in a difficult match after extra time, although they were the better team. Demoralized and disappointed, the French did not have the strength for another bronze medal, and were defeated by the Danes. The French are particularly angry at this defeat due to the officiating, which was clearly on the side of the German hosts and which caused Michaël Guigou's goal 30 seconds before the end of the game to be disallowed, preventing the French from getting back into the game. Germany won the championship by defeating Poland.

A year later, at the 2008 European Championship in Norway, Croatia played the hosts in the last round of the second group stage. It was a match that directly decided which of the two teams would advance to the semi-finals. In a tough and difficult match, the Croats somehow managed to pull off the necessary draw and advance. The team reached the final against Denmark by defeating the strong France in a dramatic semi-final with a goal difference. Denmark had one of its best teams ever at this championship. In the second group stage of the same championship, they inflicted a shocking defeat on Croatia with a 10-goal advantage, so they were also the favorite in the final. The Croats surprisingly took a 4-0 lead at the start of the final match, but they were still unable to maintain the same rhythm for 60 minutes against a better opponent, and in the end they lost by 4 goals.

At the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, Croatia defeated Denmark in the quarterfinals, but lost again to the better-performing France in the semifinals. In the third-place match, a more motivated Spain left Croatia without a medal.

At the 2009 World Championship held in Croatia, the national team had nine consecutive victories leading up to the final. In the last match of the second round of the group stage, when the semi-finalists were already known, Croatia defeated France 22:19. The French played with a reserve team in that match and saved their energy for the final of the championship. The Croats also did not play with full commitment, although they were motivated to win that match in front of their home crowd. After Croatia's victory over Poland in the semi-finals, France was once again the dangerous team in the final. Although Croatia was a slight favorite due to its home field and the full Zagreb Arena, the French ran out with the best lineup and did not show that they did not have the status of favorites. Croatia had a 12:11 advantage at half-time, but in the second half the French showed their strength and took the lead after an uncertain 15 minutes. The French defense was so well-positioned that at one point the Croatian players played for more than 10 minutes without scoring a goal. They often failed to get a quality shot on goal, and even when they did, it was usually saved without major problems by goalkeeper Thierry Omeyer. The French increased their lead through counterattacks, which were mainly carried out by the fast wings Luc Abalo and Michaël Guigou. The final score was 24:19 for France.

At the 2010 European Championship in Austria, Croatia won the silver medal. The final between France and Croatia was another rematch of the duel between the two best handball teams. Croatia reached the final with a semi-final victory over Poland. The course of the game in the final was the same as in the 2009 World Championship final. In the first half, Croatia slightly dominated while the french played solidly and slowly. Croatia had a 2-point lead towards the end of the half, but two quick goals by Nikola Karabatić brought the French back into the game. Thus, the half ended in a draw. The same story was told in the second half. The French continued their solid play, and with excellent defense, goalkeeper Omeyer's saves and quick counterattacks by Abalo and Guigou, they quickly took the lead. The final score was 25:21 for the French, and they added their third major international gold medal in a row to their collection. By winning this gold, the French became the first handball team in the history of sports to be simultaneously world, European and Olympic champions. Shortly after the tournament ended Lino Červar gave his resignation and left the team after long 8 years.

Goluža era (2010–2015)

After the departure of the trophy-winning coach Lino Červar, Slavko Goluža took over the Croatian handball team in 2010 and at his first major competition, the 2011 World Championship in Sweden, he won 5th place. The national team showed its worst performance since the 2002 European Championship and for the first time since 2002, it was not among the top 3 teams in the world in terms of quality of play. Defeats against the then very strong Denmark and the host Sweden, and a draw with Serbia, left Croatia without a semi-final. Croatia remained third in its group in the second phase, and Denmark qualified for the semi-finals as first in the group and Sweden as second. Croatia eventually defeated Iceland in the match for 5th place.

At the 2012 European Championship in Serbia, Croatia reached the semi-finals with less difficulty. In the semi-finals, Serbia defeated Croatia on the wings of the home crowd and with the help of great motivation, based not only on neighborhood and sporting, but also historical and political reasons. In the bronze medal match, Croatia defeated the Spaniards.

At the 2012 London Olympics, Croatia easily and convincingly defeated all 5 opponents in the group with an average of 8.2 goals per game. South Korea was defeated by 10 goals, Serbia by 8, Hungary by 7, Denmark by 11, and Spain by 5. Croatia played brilliantly in the group matches. They finished their attacks with quality, had many quick counterattacks and an excellent 5-1 defense with the attacking Mozart Ivano Balić in the role of a forward defender. In that group stage, Croatia played by far its best handball since independence and one of the best seen in the history of world representative handball. The 11-goal defeat that Croatia inflicted on great Denmark was characterized by the Danes as one of the heaviest defeats in their history. After those initial handball rhapsodies, Croatia was a big favorite for gold. However, Croatia unexpectedly struggled against the solid Tunisia in the quarter-finals, and even trailed by 1 point at half-time. The Tunisians played very rough. They constantly got into physical duels with the Croatians and hit them unsportsmanlike. Sometimes they even tried to push Croatian players off the field at the sidelines. Since the Tunisians could not maintain their fiercely aggressive pace from the first half for the entire 60 minutes, the Croatians improved their game, turned the score around at half-time and eventually won. In the semi-final match, France took a 3-0 lead against Croatia right from the start. Although Croatia had many more missed shots on goal than France, at half-time France's advantage was only 2 points. The French attack, as well as the defense, were much worse during the Olympic tournament, and throughout the entire semi-final match, than they were in the period from 2006 to 2011. France had a hard time creating scoring chances, so they shot much less on goal. On the other hand, they were unable to stop the Croats from creating more chances and half-chances. Despite this, the execution of Croatian attacks was extremely poor. The Croats, in relatively promising situations, had a large number of attempts either saved by French goalkeeper Thierry Omeyer or would have missed the entire goal. Croatia tried to catch up throughout the game, and on several occasions came within 2 goals of being behind and came close to equalizing. Technical errors at key moments and imprecision in shooting on goal ultimately prevented them from returning to the match. After Croatia missed its chances, France took a 5-point lead and calmly ended the game with a 25:22 victory. In the bronze medal match, Croatia defeated Hungary for the second time in the same tournament by a 7-point margin. France won the championship title by defeating the surprise of the tournament, Sweden, in the final. Having won 5 out of 6 major competitions in 5 years, including 2 Olympic titles, this French team officially became the greatest generation in the history of handball.

At the 2013 World Championship held in Spain, Croatia again won all five games in the group. In the further elimination stages, Croatia easily defeated weak Belarus in the round of 16, and in the quarter-finals, France avenged its defeat at the London Olympics by as much as 7 goals. In that match, Drago Vuković received a red card after about forty seconds, and Croatia had fewer available field players due to previous injuries. However, France, whose slight decline in quality despite winning Olympic gold was also felt at the previous 2 competitions, was again not at the highest level seen in 2011 and earlier at the championship in Spain. Fatigue due to the lack of available field players, and exhaustion from the efforts against the French, caused the Croatians to lose to Denmark in the semi-finals. In the bronze medal match, Croatia easily defeated the surprise of the championship, Slovenia.

At the 2014 European Championship in Denmark, Croatia reached the semi-finals without any major problems, where the hosts were waiting for them. The team played the first half of the semi-final excellently and went into the break with a 2-point lead. The Croatians played worse in the second half, however, with poor play with two players more and a series of unused attacks costing them the defeat. In the bronze medal match, Spain led Croatia for most of the match. Croatia had several chances to equalize towards the end, but inaccuracy in passing prevented them from doing so, and they ended up losing the medal.

At the 2015 World Championship Croatia has a relatively easy path to the quarter finals, they defeated Austria, Tunisia, Iran, North Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Group and then Brazil in the Round of 16, but then the unexpected happened, Croatia lost the quarter-final match against Poland and got kicked out of the tournament, they finished 6th and it was Croatia's worst performance at the international scene since 2002. Days after the tournament ended Slavko Goluža gave his resignation after 5 years of being the team's coach.

Babić era (2015–2017)

Following the Croatia's worst performance at the international scene since 2002, Goluža was sacked as the coach and replaced by his assistant Željko Babić. Babić had a difficult job ahead of 2016 European Championship. Croatia at the time hadn't won a medal in 3 years, last time being a bronze medal at the 2013 World Championship. With many older, more experienced players leaving the team due to retirement, the team needed youngsters to take over. With Marko Kopljar as the captain, 2013 World's best Handball player Domagoj Duvnjak and others like Ivan Čupić, Zlatko Horvat, Jakov Gojun, Mirko Alilović who had many years of experience co-leading the team in the previous years and many newbies such as Marko Mamić and Luka Cindrić, the future was seen with a lot of potential but also questions. The tournament for Croatia started out with a difficult win over Belarus, a surprising loss to Norway and an easy win over Iceland. In the main round Croatia stomped over Macedonia (34-24) but suffered a big loss against old rivals France (32-24). Croats were basically out of the tournament. The only way for Croatia to go through to the semifinals was if Norway wins the match against the World, European and Olympic Champions France and then Croatia would have to win against hosts Poland by 11 goals or 10 goals if Craotia scores 35 goals or more. It was seen as a mission impossible, but Norway offered them that possibility with a surprising win over France.

In the final match in the Main Round against Poland, Croatia was leading by 5 goals at half time (15-10), then Croatian blitzkrieg happened in the first 10 minutes of second half. Croatia conceded their first goal in the second half in 40th minute while scoring 8 and basically ending the possibility that Poland goes through (since they needed to lose less than 5 goals for the semis). Things were looking incredible, Poland made a small comeback with a 5-0 goal series (30-13 - 30-18), but in the end it didn't help. Croatia won the match with an incredible and historic 14 goal difference (37-23) when the magical number was 11. The match in Croatia was remembered as "Čudo iz Krakova" (Miracle from Krakow). Croatia kicked hosts Poland out of the tournament together with France, while Norway topped the group. Croatia lost the semifinal match for the third tournament in a row against Spain but secured a bronze medal against Norway which started a rivalry with the Norwegians in the years to come. Even though there was doubts about the new era of Croatian handball, the future was bright again.

Position Players
Goalkeepers Mirko Alilović, Ivan Stevanović
Back players Domagoj Duvnjak, Marko Mamić, Marko Kopljar, Ivan Slišković, Luka Cindrić, Igor Karačić , Luka Šebetić
Line players Ilija Brozović, Krešimir Kozina, Marino Marić, Jakov Gojun
Wing players Manuel Štrlek, Antonio Kovačević, Ivan Čupić, Zlatko Horvat
Coaching staff[60] Željko Babić (Head coach), Petar Metličić (Assistant coach), Mario Tomljanović (Conditioning coach), Božo Šinković (Physiotherapists), Tomislav Madjerčić (Physiotherapist), Ivica Maraš (Technique)

Following the successful European Championship, next on the schedule was the Qualifications for the 2016 Olympics. In the qualifiers, Croatia qualified by losing to Denmark, winning against Bahrain and winning again against Norway, continuing their rivalry. Olympics started out poorly for Croatia, they lost the first game unexpectedly to Qatar, but won all the other matches including against Denmark and France to secure Top spot in the group. In the quarter-finals, Poland got revenge on Croatia (for the Euros defeat few months prior) by defeating them and removing the chance for Croatia to get a semi-final spot for the first time since 2000. Denmark won the tournament in the final against France. Few months after the unsuccessful Olympics, Croatia was preparing to play at the 2017 World Championship in France. Expectations were high and the team was ready for new challenges with a new Captain, Domagoj Duvnjak. In the Preliminary Round, Croatia only lost 1 out of 5 matches against Germany, while in the Round of 16 defeated Egypt and Spain in the Quarter-Finals. In the semi-finals they played Norway once again and this match solidified their big rivalry with the Norwegians. Croatia had a chance to win the game, it was 22-22 and 60 minutes of the match have passed but Croatia had a penalty for the win. Zlatko Horvat famously missed the penalty, the match went into extra time and Croatia lost another semi-final match. But the Croatians troubles were not over, because in the third-place match against Slovenia they had everything in their hands, leading by a big 5 points at half-time, but the big Slovenian turnaround happened and Croatia dramatically lost the bronze medal. Babić was fired a few days after the match due to the failure in the tournament.

Second Červar era (2017–2021)

Following the unsuccessful 2017 World Championship where Croatia finished 4th, Babić was fired from his position as the coach of the Croatian team and after 7 years Lino Červar was brought back shortly afterwards in march. Červar had a huge responsibility on his hands since the first tournament he would be leading Croatia to was the 2018 European Championship where Croatia were the hosts. For the tournament he brought back the pivot expert Igor Vori to the team after 3 years of being absent from the team following his semi-retirement due to injuries after the 2015 World Championship. The tournament started well for the Croats with 2 wins against Serbia and Iceland but also a loss in the cruical match against Sweden who would later become vice champions. In the Main Round they won matches against Belarus and Norway but lost against France and missed out their first European semi-final since 2002. They secured the fifth place in a match against Czech Republic. A year later the tournament started even more amazing with 5 straight wins, most notably against Spain but in the main round got defeated surprisingly by Brazil and then hosts Germany and were out of the tournament. They defeated France and secured the fifth place match (which they lost against Sweden) and qualification for the 2020 Olympics.

At the 2020 European Championship expectations were pretty low for the Croats since by then they haven't won a medal in any major competitions since 2016. Just like the previous year, the Croats defeated the first 5 teams in the first 5 matches, the last one being Germany after an amazing comeback where the Germans were ahead for the majority of the game, even winning (16-11) but Croatia's winning mentality made sure they would be the ones to walk out with two points. The win qualified them for the first semis in 3 years, kicking Germany out of the tournament and getting revenge for the year prior. Before the semis Croatia won one more match against Czech Republic and drew against Spain. In the semis they defeated Norway after extra time, got revenge for the 2017 World Championship semi-final defeat and reached their first European Final since 2010. In the final they lost against Spain (22-20), secured a silver medal and the Captain Domagoj Duvnjak was announced as the MVP of the tournament.

Position Players
Goalkeepers Marin Šego , Matej Ašanin
Back players Domagoj Duvnjak, Marko Mamić , Josip Šarac , Matej Hrstić , Luka Cindrić , Igor Karačić , Luka Stepančić
Line players Željko Musa, Marino Marić, Marin Šipić
Wing players Zlatko Horvat , Vlado Matanović , David Mandić, Valentino Ravnić
Coaching staff[61] Lino Červar (Head coach), Hrvoje Horvat (Assistant coach), Miljenko Rak (Conditioning coach), Damir Kajba (Physiotherapists), Filip Šimunović (Physiotherapist), Zdravko Mirilović (Technique)

What followed at the 2021 World Championship is something nobody could've predicted. Completely opposite of the year prior, Croatia went into the tournament with the highest expectations, after all they were European vice-champions. Already in the first match they drew against Japan and it didn't look good. Two wins against Angola and Qatar secured them the Main Round where they defeated Bahrain, shockingly lost against Argentina and got humiliated by Denmark (38-26). They were not only out of the tournament and not only they finished 15th (their worst result in any international competition since 2002) but the coach Lino Červar announced his departure from the team right before the final match in the group against Denmark and left the team in shambles. Červar leaving, senior players retiring and young players being needed, he future was uncertain.

Second series of poor results (2021–2024)

After a debacle at the 2021 World Championship where Croatia finished 15th (their worst result at the international scene since 2002) Lino Červar stepped down as the coach and got replaced by his assistant coach Hrvoje Horvat Jr.. His first task was to qualify Croatia for the 2020 Olympics. Croatia played 3 matches against France, Portugal and Tunisia, won the matches against Portugal and Tunisia, lost against France and because of the goal difference Portugal went through and Croatia didn't. They failed to qualify for their second Olympics in history. After a failure of not qualifying for the Olympics, Croatia also failed to make a promising result at the 2022 European Championship (8th place) and the 2023 World Championsip (9th place). Hrvoje Horvat Jr. stepped down as the coach after only 2 years and got replaced by a former Croatian Handballer Goran Perkovac. At the 2024 European Championship where the tournament started out amazing with a historic (39-29) victory against Spain he also failed to make a good result, in fact it was Croatia's worst result at the European Championship since 2002. Soon after the tournament ended Croatian Handball Federation made a decision to part ways with Perkovac.

Sigurðsson era (2024– )

Following a series of disappointing results at international scene at the European Championships (2022, 2024), the World Championships (2021, 2023) and the failure of not qualifying for the 2020 Olympics the change was needed. Croatian Handball Federation decided to bring in a more experienced coach, that ended up being Dagur Sigurðsson, the first foreign coach Croatian team ever had which stirred some discussion in the Croatian media.

Sigurðsson was brought in February 2024 and already had a difficult road ahead of him, he needed Croatia to qualify for the 2024 Olympics. On that road were 3 matches against Austria, Germany and Algeria in March 2024. He led them to three wins and qualified the team for their first Olympics since 2016. All looked good but at the actual event Croatia had their worst ever Olympics since their independence. They won only 2 out of 5 matches. Won matches against Japan and Germany, lost against Slovenia and received a humiliating loss against Sweden (38-27). They lost their final match against Spain and were kicked out of the tournament.

After a disappointing result at the Olympics, Sigurðsson was under even more pressure to prove he was the right man for the job notably since the next tournament was (partially) held at home, the 2025 World Men's Handball Championship. Croatia needed a good result especially in front of their own crowd. The tournament started out very well with two great wins against Bahrain and Argentina but the third match saw them lose a crucial match against Egypt (28-24). The loss saw it difficult for them to go through to the quarter-finals (but not impossible) since they would need to defeat all three of their opponents, one being Cape Verde, another being the contenders for the top spot in the group, Iceland and the final being a fourth best placed team at the Olympics, Slovenia. First game was an easy win against Cape Verde by 20 goals. Then what followed was an incredible comeback to the tournament. The match against Iceland was the first and crucial one for Croatia to advance to the quarterfinals of the World Championship. The Icelanders were clear favorites against the hosts due to the quality of the players playing for the better clubs in the Bundesliga, their fast, modern Scandinavian handball, and Iceland's victory over Croatia the year before at the 2024 European Championship. On paper it was one thing, but on the field it was completely the opposite. Croatia led 20-12 at halftime and ended the match 32-26. Dagur Sigurdsson, with his quality and knowledge of Icelandic handball, destroyed "His" Iceland with a classic Croatian 5-1 defense (which turned out to be the biggest win of the tournament). Leon Šušnja and David Mandić excelled with their defensive play, while Marko Mamić destroyed Aron Palmarsson (Iceland's main asset and playmaker) with his play, long arms, height, mobility and knowledge of playing as a unit in a 5-1 defense, something he tends to play in his club Leipzig. The match against Slovenia was next and it didn't look easy. Although the Slovenians were already out of the championship and had no chance of advancing, they still wanted to win and are big rivals to the Croatians, due to their neighborhood and political history. The Slovenians wanted to finish the tournament with a win and prevent the Croatians from advancing, while the Croatians were under great pressure because they needed a win. The match started disastrously, Slovenia led 0-5, and Croatia scored the first goal only in the 8th minute. The Croatians managed to come back from the nightmare because at halftime it was 15-15. They took the lead for the first time midway through the second half and eventually won 29-26 after a hard-fought battle. They saw themselves topping the group with 8 points, same as Egypt and Iceland but with a better goal difference. Croatia reached their first playoff match in any international competition in 5 years and the enthusiasm but also the confidence in this young team was slowly being brought back in Croatia, both in the Arena Zagreb but also in front of the screens at home.

The quarter-finals were one for the ages, a difficult match against Hungary was nearly lost, until a 55th minute when Croatia made a 5-0 series (31-30) and won the match with an incredible last second goal by Marin Šipić. The goal saw them reaching their first semi-finals at the World Championship since 2017. In the other quarter-final match France were sent to the semis in a similar way with a winning goal by Luka Karabatić being scored in the last 250 milliseconds of the match. The time was for another famous El Clasico between the old rivals France. In the semi-final game Croatia played their best game of the tournament and won in an incredible semi-final match (31-28) which saw them placed in the final of the tournament. Many handball experts and former players from the Balkans including Veselin Vujović were very outspoken on how Croatia's fantastic play specifically masterful defense resembled the defense Croatia was known in the 2000s during Červar's reign where Igor Vori played the role that Marko Mamić played against France. The games against Iceland and now France were two of the best games Croatia played in years. They lost in the final against Denmark (32-26) and won their first medal at the World Championship since 2013 and their first overall medal in 5 years since 2020. The tournament ended Domagoj Duvnjak's incredible 18 year international career and his role as the captain of the national team after 8 years, Igor Karačić and Ivan Pešić also retired respectfully. Mario Šoštarič was declared the best right wing of the tournament and Ivan Martinović the best right back, Martinović also became the captain following Duvnjak's retirement.

Position Players
Goalkeepers Dominik Kuzmanović, Ivan Pešić
Back players Ivan Martinović, Mateo Maraš, Luka Lovre Klarica, Zvonimir Srna, Tin Lučin, Domagoj Duvnjak, Igor Karačić, Ivano Pavlović, Luka Cindrić
Line players Marin Šipić, Josip Šimić, Veron Načinović
Wing players Mario Šoštarić, Filip Glavaš, David Mandić, Marin Jelinić, Lovro Mihić
Defensive players Leon Šušnja, Marko Mamić
Coaching staff[62] Dagur Sigurðsson (Head coach), Denis Špoljarić (Assistant coach), Valter Matošević (GK coach), Miljenko Rak (Conditioning coach), Danijel Brajković (Conditioning coach), Goran Krušelj (Physiotherapists), Goran Krušelj (Physiotherapist), Zdravko Mirilović (Technique)

Before the tournament in January, the Croatians played two qualifying matches for the 2026 European Championship. They won against Luxembourg and Belgium, and after the aforementioned tournament they defeated Luxembourg and Belgium again in the return matches together with the Czech Republic in Brno and Zagreb. It was their best qualifications since 2012.

Before the tournament, due to injuries Croatia lost its main pivot Marin Šipić, and then Leon Ljevar, who was supposed to make his debut at a major tournament, along with four players returning from long injuries and other players who had not had much playing time for their clubs, expectations were quite low. At the very beginning of the tournament, Croatia achieved 2 victories, but very hard against Georgia and the Netherlands, and then suffered a heavy defeat against Sweden (35-27) (one of the hosts and one of the favorites for gold). In the main round, Croatia needed 4 wins out of 4 games to reach the semifinals, and that's what happened. First against Iceland, Switzerland, and then against neighbors Slovenia and the key match against Hungary (Hungary drew with Sweden and more or less eliminated them from the tournament). Croats lost to Germany (31-28) in the semifinals, then grabbed the bronze medal from Iceland (34-33) who were seeking revenge on the Croats. Croatia won its seventh medal at the European Championships and its second in a row after the 2025 World Championship. The last time that happened was when Slavko Goluža won 3 bronze medals in a row in early 2010s. By finishing in the Top 4 Croatia directly qualified for the 2027 World Championship.

Before the tournament, there were many question marks for this European Championship from the Croatian and foreign media, who assumed that the success at the 2025 World Championship was only due to the home field advantage and "luck" against Slovenia and especially Hungary in the quarterfinals of the championship. The most popular target of the Croatian national team during the competition was the Danish handball analyst Rasmus Boysen, who assumed that Croatia would be the biggest disappointment of the tournament because he did not think that the world vice-champions would reach the semifinals of the tournament. After winning the bronze medal, opinions changed on his part, as well as on the part of other media, who realized that after many years, Croatia managed to develop continuity on the world stage by winning two medals in two consecutive competitions.

Position Players
Goalkeepers Dominik Kuzmanović, Matej Mandić, Dino Slavić
Back players Ivan Martinović, Mateo Maraš, Luka Lovre Klarica, Zvonimir Srna, Tin Lučin, Diano Neris Ćeško, Luka Cindrić, Ivano Pavlović
Line players Zlatko Raužan, Josip Šimić, Veron Načinović
Wing players Mario Šoštarić, Filip Glavaš, David Mandić, Marin Jelinić
Defensive players Leon Šušnja, Marko Mamić
Coaching staff[63] Dagur Sigurðsson (Head coach), Denis Špoljarić (Assistant coach), Valter Matošević (GK coach), Ivica Maraš (Team Leader), Željko Kercel (Physiotherapist), Josip Režić (Physiotherapist), Saša Matejčić (Physiotherapist), Team Official Ivica Udovičić (Team Official)

Rivalries

Croatia has developed several handball rivalries. Their most played rivalry is against France called "El Clasico", which is often considered to be one of the biggest modern handball rivalries since the end of the Cold War. Croatia has played 3 finals against France (1995, 2009, 2010), lost all 3 and 7 semifinals winning 4 (1996, 2005, 2008, 2025) and losing 3 (2006, 2008, 2012) and two quarter-finals winning once (2013) and losing once (2007). The most painful defeat against the French was in 2009, when the French took the world gold medal from them in the middle of Zagreb, and that's when the rivalry took on greater significance.

Their other rivalries include Spain, Denmark, Germany and neighbors Slovenia and Serbia. Against Spain they lost 2 finals (2005, 2020), played two semi-finals winning one (2003) and losing one (2016) and they played three matches for the bronze medal, winning one (2012) and losing two (2008, 2014). Against Denmark they also lost two finals (2008, 2025), and played three matches for the bronze medal winning once (1994) and losing twice (2004, 2006). Against Germany they won two gold medals by defeating them in the final (2003, 2004) and lost one semi-final match (2026). Against Slovenia they lost semi-final in 2004, bronze medal match (2017) and won a bronze medal match (2013). Against Serbia they lost the semi-finals in 2012 in Belgrade.

Another rivalry was with the Norwegians that peaked in the mid to late 2010s. At almost every major championship, the Croatians played with them, including three important medal matches and one qualifying match for the 2016 Olympic Games. The first matches against the Norwegians were in the qualifying group for the 2016 European Championship. The Croatians lost the first match (27-26), while they won the second (31-25). Both teams qualified for the championship. The first major game against the Norwegians was at the 2016 European Championship in the group stage, which the Norwegians won (34-31), at the same championship, the Croatians took revenge on them in a more important match for the bronze medal (31-24). A few months after the Euros, the Croatians won against them again in the group stage of the 2016 Olympic Games qualifiers (27-21). The most painful defeat against the Norwegians occurred in the semi-final match of the 2017 World Championship in France, in which the Croatians had a penalty to win, which they did not score, and then the Norwegians won the game after extra time (28-25). A year later, at the 2018 European Championship the Croats inflicted another defeat on them in the Group Stage (32-28). The 2019 World Championship was the first championship and/or qualifiers since 2014 in which the two national teams did not play together. And finally, in the semi-final match of the 2020 European Championship, the Croats took revenge for the semi-final defeat in 2017, in which they defeated them in a similar way after extra time (29-28). That victory for the Croats closed an era of Croatian and Norwegian handball and the mini-rivalry that the two national teams had, because after that, the two teams have not played a match together at a major championship to this day.

Results at international competitions

Main article: Croatian national handball team results

Prior to 1991, Croatia men's national handball team played as a part of Yugoslavia men's national handball team.

Croatia played its first match on 14 January 1991 in Zagreb. Team's first opponent was Japan and the match ended tied 23–23.

Overview of achievements at major international competitions

Year Summer Olympics World Championship European Championship
1994
1995
1996 5th
1997 13th
1998 8th
1999 10th
2000 Did not qualify 6th
2001 9th
2002 16th
2003
2004 4th
2005
2006 4th
2007 5th
2008 4th
2009
2010
2011 5th
2012
2013
2014 4th
2015 6th
2016 5th
2017 4th
2018 5th
2019 6th
2020 Did not qualify
2021 15th
2022 8th
2023 9th
2024 9th 11th
2025
2026

Medal count (major competitions)

Updated after 2026 European Handball Championship

Competition Total
Olympic Games 2 0 1 3
World Championship 1 4 1 6
European Championship 0 3 4 7
Total 3 7 6 16

  Champions    Runners-up    Third place    Fourth place  

Competitive record (major competitions)

Competition Pld W D L GF GA GD
Olympic Games (6 times) 42 31 0 11 1191 1081 +110
World Championship (16 times) 123 89 6 28 3577 3065 +512
European Championship (16 times) 114 66 10 38 3077 2938 +139
Total 279 186 16 77 7845 7084 +761

Summer Olympics

Competitive record at the Summer Olympics

Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA GD
1992 Did not enter
1996 Final 7 6 0 1 183 168 +15
2000 Did not qualify
2004 Final 8 8 0 0 238 211 +27
2008 Fourth place 4th 8 4 0 4 218 199 +19
2012 Third place 8 7 0 1 230 183 +47
2016 Quarterfinal 5th 6 4 0 2 174 164 +10
2020 Did not qualify
2024 Preliminary round 9th 5 2 0 3 148 156 −8
2028 TBD
2032
Total Qualified: 6/8 42 31 0 11 1191 1081 +110
Including qualifying rounds 57 44 0 13 1660 1451 +209

Competitive record in qualifying rounds

Year Pld W D L GF GA GD Qual
1992 Did not enter N/A
1996 2nd at the 1995 World Champ yes
2000 10th at the 1999 World Champ no
2004 1st at the 2003 World Champ yes
2008 3 3 0 0 100 72 +28 yes
2012 3 3 0 0 102 65 +37 yes
2016 3 2 0 1 84 71 +13 yes
2020 3 2 0 1 81 81 0 no
2024 3 3 0 0 102 81 +21 yes
2028 TBD
2032 TBD
Total 15 13 0 2 469 370 +99 4/5

World Championship

Competitive record at the World Championship

Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA GD
1993 Did not enter
1995 Final 2nd 9 6 1 2 246 211 +35
1997 Round of 16 13th 6 2 1 3 148 146 +2
1999 Round of 16 10th 6 3 1 2 141 145 −4
2001 Round of 16 9th 6 3 1 2 188 152 +36
2003 Final 1st 9 8 0 1 270 243 +27
2005 Final 2nd 10 8 0 2 316 273 +43
2007 Quarterfinal 5th 10 9 0 1 308 246 +62
2009 Final 2nd 10 9 0 1 298 228 +70
2011 Main Round 5th 9 6 1 2 271 213 +58
2013 Semi-final 3rd 9 8 0 1 266 202 +64
2015 Quarterfinal 6th 9 7 0 2 258 224 +34
2017 Semi-final 4th 9 6 0 3 254 233 +21
2019 Main Round 6th 9 6 0 3 250 220 +30
2021 Main Round 15th 6 3 1 2 156 152 +4
2023 Main Round 9th 6 4 1 1 207 167 +40
2025 Final 2nd 9 7 0 2 286 234 +52
2027 Qualified
2029 TBD
2031
Total Qualified: 17/20 132 95 7 30 3863 3289 +574
Including qualifying rounds 144 106 6 32 4234 3447 +787

Competitive record in qualifying rounds

Year Pld W D L GF GA GD Qual
1993 Did not enter N/A
1995 3rd at the 1994 Euro yes
1997 5th at the 1996 Euro yes
1999 6 5 0 1 171 152 +19 yes
2001 6th at the 2000 Euro yes
2003 2 2 0 0 67 50 +17 yes
2005 defending champion yes
2007 4th at the 2006 Euro yes
2009 Qualified as host yes
2011 2nd at the 2010 Euro yes
2013 3rd at the 2012 Euro yes
2015 4th at the 2014 Euro yes
2017 3rd at the 2016 Euro yes
2019 2 1 0 1 63 51 +12 yes
2021 2nd at the 2020 Euro yes
2023 2 2 0 0 70 43 +27 yes
2025 Qualified as co-host yes
2027 3rd at the 2026 Euro yes
2029
2031
Total 12 10 0 2 371 296 +75 4/4

European Championship

Competitive record at the European Championship

Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA GD
1994 Semi-final 7 4 0 3 165 161 +4
1996 Preliminary Round 5th 6 4 0 2 154 150 +4
1998 Preliminary Round 8th 6 2 1 3 145 150 −5
2000 Preliminary Round 6th 6 3 1 2 146 139 +7
2002 Preliminary Round 16th 3 0 0 3 70 89 −19
2004 Semi-final 4th 8 4 2 2 222 221 +1
2006 Semi-final 4th 8 5 0 3 229 228 +1
2008 Final 8 5 1 2 212 203 +9
2010 Final 8 6 1 1 207 194 +13
2012 Semi-final 8 5 1 2 216 201 +15
2014 Semi-final 4th 8 5 0 3 229 206 +23
2016 Semi-final 8 5 0 3 250 219 +31
2018 Fifth place match 5th 7 5 0 2 204 187 +17
2020 Final 9 7 1 1 227 205 +22
2022 Main Round 8th 7 3 1 3 185 181 +4
2024 Main Round 11th 7 3 1 3 216 204 +12
2026 Semi-final 9 7 0 2 268 258 +10
2028 TBD
2030 TBD
2032 TBD
Total Qualified: 17/20 123 73 10 40 3345 3196 +149
Including qualifying rounds 170 112 13 45 4697 4242 +455

Competitive record in qualifying rounds

Year Pld W D L GF GA GD Qual
1994 8 6 1 1 214 166 +48 yes
1996 6 5 0 1 161 137 +24 yes
1998 6 4 0 2 166 145 +21 yes
2000 Qualified as host yes
2002 2 2 0 0 71 56 +15 yes
2004 2 1 1 0 62 52 +10 yes
2006 4th at the 2004 Euro yes
2008 4th at the 2006 Euro yes
2010 8 7 0 1 252 180 +72 yes
2012 6 6 0 0 168 137 +31 yes
2014 6 5 0 1 161 135 +26 yes
2016 6 5 0 1 191 148 +43 yes
2018 Qualified as host yes
2020 6 5 1 0 174 148 +26 yes
2022 2nd at the 2020 Euro yes
2024 6 4 1 1 180 164 +16 yes
2026 6 6 0 0 200 139 +61 yes
2028 TBD
2030 TBD
2032 TBD
Total 68 56 4 8 2000 1607 +393 17/17

Mediterranean Games

Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA GD
1993 Final 6 6 0 0 160 117 +43
1997 Final 5 4 0 1 121 115 +6
2001 Final 5 5 0 0 149 127 +22
2005 Final 4 3 0 1 107 103 +4
2009 Did not participate
2013 Final 6 4 0 2 166 158 +8
2018 Final 5 5 0 0 139 120 +19
2022 Did not participate
2026 TBD
2030
Total Qualified: 6/8 25 21 0 4 682 623 +59

Team

Current squad

Roster for the Friendly International Matches in March 2026

Head coach: Dagur Sigurðsson

No. Pos. Name Date of birth (age) Height App. Goals Club
1 GK Dominik Kuzmanović (2002-08-15) 15 August 2002 1.93 m 45 4 VfL Gummersbach
6 RW Mario Šoštarić (1992-11-25) 25 November 1992 1.93 m 47 185 SC Pick Szeged
9 RB Luka Lovre Klarica (2001-09-25) 25 September 2001 1.98 m 47 111 RK Zagreb
10 P Josip Šimić (2000-05-10) 10 May 2000 1.94 m 15 14 HSG Wetzlar
11 LB Zvonimir Srna (1998-01-18) 18 January 1998 2.02 m 50 122 Montpellier Handball
12 GK Matej Mandić (2002-05-02) 2 May 2002 2.04 m 37 2 SC Magdeburg
13 CB Ivano Pavlović (2003-03-19) 19 March 2003 1.90 m 14 20 RK Zagreb
14 LB Diano Neris Ćeško (2004-04-17) 17 April 2004 1.96 m 5 9 RK Izviđač
23 P Zlatko Raužan (2002-02-14) 14 February 2002 1.89 m 3 4 MRK Sesvete
33 CB Luka Cindrić (1993-07-05) 5 July 1993 1.81 m 128 354 Veszprém KC
39 LW David Mandić (1997-09-14) 14 September 1997 1.87 m 64 149 MT Melsungen
43 GK Dino Slavić (1992-12-04) 4 December 1992 1.85 m 10 0 Limoges Handball
51 RB Ivan Martinović (1998-01-06) 6 January 1998 1.94 m 66 308 Veszprém KC
52 P Leon Šušnja (1993-08-05) 5 August 1993 2.04 m 42 24 Wisła Płock
57 RW Filip Glavaš (1997-05-06) 6 May 1997 1.83 m 62 209 RK Zagreb
62 LW Marin Jelinić (1996-12-07) 7 December 1996 1.94 m 58 153 SC Pick Szeged
93 P Veron Načinović (2000-03-07) 7 March 2000 2.04 m 48 98 THW Kiel
15 LB Leon Ljevar (2001-02-12) 12 February 2001 1.98 m 2 11 RD Slovan
0 RB Patrik Martinović (2000-08-29) 29 August 2000 1.88 m 0 0 Kadetten Schaffhausen
0 LB Teo Popović (2004-12-06) 6 December 2004 1.99 m 0 0 RK Porec
0 GK Toni Matošević (2004-07-28) 28 July 2004 2.02 m 0 0 RK Zagreb
0 LB Jan Kovačec (2002-04-17) 17 April 2002 1.96 m 0 0 Jags Vöslau

Extended team

No. Pos. Name Date of birth (age) Height App. Goals Club
41 LB Tin Lučin (1999-08-16) 16 August 1999 1.96 m 55 143 RK Nexe Našice
20 RB Mateo Maraš (2000-12-17) 17 December 2000 2.03 m 47 84 Paris Saint-Germain
30 LB Marko Mamić (1994-03-06) 6 March 1994 2.02 m 106 123 SC DHfK Leipzig
53 P Marin Šipić (1996-04-29) 29 April 1996 1.90 m 77 143 HC Kriens-Luzern
36 GK Matija Špikić (1996-04-03) 3 April 1996 1.87 m 2 0 ThSV Eisenach
0 GK Filip Perić (1998-12-17) 17 December 1998 1.91 m 2 0 MRK Sesvete
2 LW Lovro Mihić (1994-08-25) 25 August 1994 1.80 m 48 68 Wisła Płock
0 LW Ivan Barbić (2002-10-01) 1 October 2002 1.84 m 1 1 RK Nexe
40 P Nikola Grahovac (1998-12-14) 14 December 1998 2.01 m 4 7 HSG Wetzlar
45 LB Halil Jaganjac (1998-06-22) 22 June 1998 2.00 m 12 31 Rhein-Neckar Löwen
37 CB Filip Vistorop (1998-04-29) 29 April 1998 1.94 m 4 5 HSG Wetzlar
21 CB Davor Gavrić (2000-10-09) 9 October 2000 1.90 m 5 11 RK Zagreb
28 CB Berislav Antonio Tokić (2006-01-05) 5 January 2006 1.94 m 2 0 Limoges Handball
38 LB Ante Ivanković (2000-08-15) 15 August 2000 1.95 m 3 12 GRK Ohrid
8 RB Matej Svržnjak (2003-01-16) 16 January 2003 1.93 m 1 3 MRK Sesvete
19 CB Matko Moslavac (2007-02-15) 15 February 2007 1.91 m 1 2 RK Nexe
0 CB Josip Tomić (2006-03-24) 24 March 2006 1.92 m 0 0 MRK Sesvete
0 CB Tin Baković (2004-01-27) 27 January 2004 1.80 m 0 0 MRK Sesvete
0 GK Sandro Meštrić (1996-08-31) 31 August 1996 1.98 m 5 0 RK Zagreb
0 RW Maksimilijan Molc (2004-02-03) 3 February 2004 1.90 m 1 1 MRK Sesvete

Coaching staff

As of 11 January 2026
Role Name
Head coach Dagur Sigurðsson
Assistant coach Denis Špoljarić
Goalkeeping coach Valter Matošević
Conditioning coaches Miljenko Rak
Danijel Brajković
Physiotherapists Goran Krušelj
Matija Rajnović
Team manager Ivica Maraš
Sporting director
Technique Zdravko Mirilović

Head coaches

Captains

Notable players

Squads

Major tournaments

Minor tournaments

Medal-winning squads

Notable players

Statistics

Most appearances

Name Matches Position Years
Domagoj Duvnjak 257 CB 2006–2025
Igor Vori 246 LP 2001–2018
Venio Losert 211 GK 1995–2015
Slavko Goluža 204 CB, LP 1991–2006
Ivano Balić 198 CB 2001–2012
Blaženko Lacković 195 OB 2001–2013
Zlatko Horvat 191 W 2005–2020
Valter Matošević 191 GK 1992–2004
Goran Perkovac 190 LB 1992–2000
Vedran Zrnić 189 W 2001–2010
Mirza Džomba 185 W 1997–2008
Petar Metličić 175 OB 1997–2009
Davor Dominiković 174 D, OB 1997–2008
Manuel Štrlek 173 W 2010–2021
Jakov Gojun 166 D 2008–2018
Mirko Alilović 164 GK 2006–2018
Drago Vuković 157 CB/OB, D 2004–2014
Ivan Čupić 156 W 2005–2024
Mirko Alilović 152 GK 2006–2018
Božidar Jović 151 LP 1995–2003
Zvonimir Bilić 147 OB 1995–2002
Nenad Kljaić 145 LP 1991–2001
Tonči Valčić 144 OB 1999–2010
Marko Kopljar 137 OB 2008–2018
Vlado Šola 132 GK 1991–2006
Denis Špoljarić 131 D 2003–2009
Denis Buntić 131 OB 2005–2018
Patrik Ćavar 120 W 1991–2003
Goran Šprem 109 W 1999–2009
Alvaro Načinović 105 LP 1992–2000
Renato Sulić 100 LP 2001–2008

Top scorers

Name Goals Average Position Years
Domagoj Duvnjak 771 3.00 CB 2006–2025
Mirza Džomba 719 3.89 W 1997–2008
Patrik Ćavar 639 5.33 W 1991–2003
Manuel Štrlek 600 3.16 W 2010–2021
Zlatko Horvat 590 2.51 W 2008–2020
Igor Vori 590 2.39 P 2001–2018
Ivan Čupić 577 3.90 W 2005–2024
Blaženko Lacković 571 2.93 OB 2001–2013
Vedran Zrnić 571 2.03 W 2001–2010
Slavko Goluža 545 CB, LB 1991–2006
Ivano Balić 535 2.70 CB 2001–2012
Zvonimir Bilić 500 OB 1995–2002
Petar Metličić 471 2.83 OB 1997–2009
Iztok Puc 325 2.23 OB 1991–1998
Marko Kopljar 322 RB 2005–2018
Denis Buntić 293 RB 2005–2018
Irfan Smajlagić 290 W 1991–2000
Goran Šprem 277 W 1999–2009
Zlatko Saračević 244 OB 1992–2000
Luka Stepančić 241 OB 2013–
Igor Karačić 236 2.41 CB 2013–
Luka Cindrić 229 2.66 CB 2014–
Tonči Valčić 226 OB 1999–2010
Renato Sulić 221 P 2001–2008
Drago Vuković 210 OB 2004–2014
Davor Dominiković 205 OB 1997–2008
Damir Bičanić 176 OB 2005–2020
Alvaro Načinović 165 P 1992–2000
Nikša Kaleb 152 W 1999–2010
Ivan Slišković 140 OB 2013–
Zeljko Musa 118 0,81 W 2017–
Ivan Martinović 107 3.96 OB 2019–
Božidar Jović 100 P 1995–2003

Players that played for Croatian National Handball Team after the breakup of Yugoslavia and
collected 100+ caps combined for Yugoslavian and Croatian National Handball Teams.

Name Matches Position Years
Nenad Kljaić 214 OB 1987–2001
Valter Matošević 213 GK 1989–2004
Goran Perkovac 202 OB 1988–2000
Zlatko Saračević 181 OB 1981–2000
Mirko Bašić 180 GK 1979–2000
Iztok Puc 147 OB 1988–1998
Alvaro Načinović 144 P 1988–2000
Tonči Peribonio 139 GK 1986–1994
Patrik Ćavar 135 W 1989–2004
Irfan Smajlagić 123 W 1987–2001
Zoran Mikulić 62 OB 1989–2001
Boris Jarak 40 1988–1996

Record against other teams

As of 14 December 2025

Key
Positive total balance (more wins)
Neutral total balance (equal W/L ratio)
Negative total balance (more losses)
National team Total Olympic Games World Championship European Championship Mediterranean Games Qualifications
Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L Pld W D L

Algeria 4 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 — — — — 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0
Angola 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Argentina 5 3 0 2 1 1 0 0 4 2 0 2 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Australia 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 0 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Austria 7 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — 4 4 0 0
Bahrain 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 — — — — — — — — 1 1 0 0
Belgium 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — — — — — — — — 2 2 0 0
Belarus 12 10 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 3 3 0 0 — — — — 6 4 2 0
Bosnia and
Herzegovina 		2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Brazil 3 2 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Bulgaria 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — — — — 2 2 0 0
China 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Chile 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — — — — — 1 1 0 0
China 2 2 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Cuba 3 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 1 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Czech Republic 7 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 1 3 3 0 0 — — — — 2 2 0 0
Denmark 20 9 1 11 3 3 0 0 7 2 0 5 10 4 0 6 — — — — 1 0 0 1
Egypt 7 6 0 1 0 0 0 0 4 4 0 0 — — — — 3 2 0 1 0 0 0 0
Finland 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — — — — 4 4 0 0
France 25 10 1 14 5 2 0 3 8 5 0 3 11 2 1 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Germany 15 8 1 6 1 1 0 0 5 3 1 1 4 3 0 1 — — — — 0 0 0 0
Greece 6 6 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 0 0 2 2 0 0
Greenland 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Hungary 18 13 1 4 3 3 0 0 8 7 0 1 4 2 1 1 — — — — 4 2 0 2
Iceland 8 7 1 0 1 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 4 3 1 0 — — — — 3 2 0 1
Iran 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Italy 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0
Japan 5 4 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 1 0 — — — — — — — — 2 2 0 0
Kuwait 3 3 0 0 1 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Latvia 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — — — — 2 2 0 0
Lithuania 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — — — — 2 2 0 0
Macedonia 6 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 0 1
Montenegro 9 8 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Morocco 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 3 0 0 — — — — 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Netherlands 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — — — — 2 2 0 0
Nigeria 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Norway 18 11 2 5 0 0 0 0 3 0 1 2 8 6 1 1 — — — — 3 2 0 1
Poland 9 7 0 2 2 1 0 1 3 2 0 1 4 4 0 0 — — — — 0 0 0 0
Portugal 5 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 2 1 0 — — — — 2 1 0 1
Qatar 3 2 0 1 1 0 0 1 2 2 0 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Romania 6 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — 4 4 0 0
Russia 16 9 1 6 2 2 0 0 6 4 0 2 7 2 1 4 — — — — 1 1 0 0
Saudi Arabia 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Serbia * 14 8 2 4 1 1 0 0 3 1 1 1 6 3 0 3 1 1 0 0 2 1 1 0
Slovakia 5 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 — — — — 4 4 0 0
Slovenia 15 9 0 6 1 1 0 0 4 3 0 1 5 3 0 2 2 1 0 1 4 2 0 2
South Korea 5 4 0 1 2 2 0 0 3 2 0 1 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Spain 29 18 2 9 4 3 0 1 10 8 0 2 12 5 2 5 1 0 0 1 3 3 0 0
Sweden 14 7 1 6 2 1 0 1 4 3 0 1 3 2 0 1 — — — — 0 0 0 0
Switzerland 4 4 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — 2 2 0 0
Tunisia 9 9 0 0 2 2 0 0 2 2 0 0 — — — — 2 2 0 0 1 1 0 0
Turkey 6 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 6 6 0 0
Ukraine 3 2 0 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 1 2 2 0 0 — — — — 0 0 0 0
United States 2 2 0 0 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 — — — — — — — — 0 0 0 0
Total (53) 359 259 18 82
* includes games against Serbia and Montenegro

Biggest wins

Double digit goal difference

Olympic Games World Championship European Championship Mediterranean Games Qualifications
  • +19 vs. Brasil (33–14) 2008
  • +11 vs. China (33–22) 2008
  • +11 vs. Denmark (32–21) 2012
  • +10 vs. South Korea (31–21) 2012
  • +29 vs. USA (41–12) 2001
  • +27 vs. Australia (42–15) 2011
  • +23 vs. Australia (36–13) 2013
  • +21 vs. Cuba (41–20) 2009
  • +20 vs. Argentina (38–18) 2011
  • +20 vs. Australia (38–18) 2005
  • +20 vs. Cape Verde (44–24) 2025
  • +19 vs. Iran (41–22) 2015
  • +19 vs. Kuwait (40–21) 2009
  • +18 vs. South Korea (41–23) 2007
  • +18 vs. USA (40–22) 2023
  • +15 vs. Chile (37–22) 2017
  • +15 vs. Argentina (33-18) 2025
  • +14 vs. Egypt (30–16) 1995
  • +14 vs. Bahrain (36-22) 2025
  • +13 vs. Argentina (36–23) 2005
  • +13 vs. China (34–21) 1997
  • +13 vs. Morocco (35–22) 2007
  • +12 vs. Morocco (33–21) 1995
  • +12 vs. Morocco (36–24) 2023
  • +11 vs. Algeria (31–20) 2013
  • +11 vs. Bahrain (43-32) 2023
  • +10 vs. Spain (32–22) 2009
  • +14 vs. Poland (37–23) 2016
  • +13 vs. Ukraine (38–25) 2022
  • +11 vs. Belarus (33–22) 2014
  • +10 vs. Macedonia (34–24) 2016
  • +10 vs. Serbia (32–22) 2018
  • +10 vs. Spain (39–29) 2024
  • +8 vs. Greece (33–25) 2005
  • +20 vs. Chile (35–15) 2012
  • +20 vs. Finland (34–14) 2010
  • +19 vs. Finland (39–20) 2010
  • +15 vs. Japan (37–22) 2008
  • +14 vs. Japan (36–22) 2012
  • +14 vs. Turkey (40–26) 2016
  • +13 vs. Slovakia (34–21) 2010
  • +12 vs. Greece (32–20) 2010
  • +12 vs. Romania (34–22) 2012
  • +11 vs. Algeria (37–26) 2008
  • +11 vs. Netherlands (35–24) 2016
  • +11 vs. Slovakia (32–21) 2014
  • +10 vs. Bahrain (32–22) 2016
  • +10 vs. Turkey (32–22) 2016

Biggest losses

Olympic Games World Championship European Championship Mediterranean Games Qualifications
  • -11 vs. Sweden (27-38) 2024
  • -9 vs. Sweden (18–27) 1996
  • -7 vs. Qatar (23–30) 2016
  • -12 vs. Denmark (26–38) 2021
  • -11 vs. Russia (20–31) 1997
  • -15 vs. Russia (14–29) 1998
  • -12 vs. FR Yugoslavia (22–34) 2002
  • -10 vs. Denmark (20–30) 2008
  • -7 vs. Spain (21–28) 2005

Awards

The Croatia national handball team has received numerous award throughout the years.

Senior squad

U-19 squad

See also

References

  1. ^ "CROATIA SEEK CONSISTENCY ON THEIR WAY TO THE TOP". eurohandball.com. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  2. ^ "The Most Successful Nations at Men's Handball". objectivelist.com. Retrieved 1 January 2024.
  3. ^ "Dokumentarac o povijesnom uspjehu kada su Hrvati šokirali sportski svijet". tportal.hr. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  4. ^ "Povijest rukometa". hrs.hr (in Croatian). Archived from the original on 6 January 2016.
  5. ^ "Razvoj rukometa". hrs.hr (in Croatian). Archived from the original on 24 February 2014. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  6. ^ "Povijest rukometa". rkhd.hr (in Croatian). Archived from the original on 21 October 2016. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
  7. ^ "Počeci djelovanja Hrvatskog rukometnog saveza". issuu.com (in Croatian).
  8. ^ "Prije 70 godina odigrana prva rukometna utakmica u Zagrebu". issuu.com (in Croatian).
  9. ^ "ZNAČAJNIH 80 GODINA RUKOMETA". hr-rukomet.hr (in Croatian). Archived from the original on 12 January 2019. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
  10. ^ "International Handball Federation". IHF.
  11. ^ "Uspeh rukometašica". vreme.com (in Serbian).
  12. ^ "Od Od Rijeke do Herninga: Kako je Hrvatska postala pretplaćena na rukometne". index.hr (in Croatian).
  13. ^ Olimpijski Komitet Srbije(1)
  14. ^ Olimpijski Komitet Srbije(2)
  15. ^ "Hrvatski Olimpijski Odbor". Archived from the original on 7 May 2017. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
  16. ^ Olimp(MI)
  17. ^ MI 1979.
  18. ^ Olimpijska Odličja
  19. ^ "Olimpijski Treneri". Archived from the original on 20 September 2016. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
  20. ^ Rukometne Medalje
  21. ^ Svjetske Medalje
  22. ^ Todor Arhiv
  23. ^ Njemački Arhiv
  24. ^ "Enciklopedija Fizičke Kulture". Archived from the original on 19 March 2016. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
  25. ^ Irislav Dolenec
  26. ^ Jezdimir Stanković
  27. ^ Branislav Pokrajac
  28. ^ Ivan Snoj
  29. ^ Pero Janjić(1)
  30. ^ Pero Janjić(2)
  31. ^ Zdravko Malić(1) Archived 5 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine
  32. ^ Zdravko Malić(2)
  33. ^ Josip Milković SP 1974.
  34. ^ "Božo Peter SP 1961". Archived from the original on 22 August 2014. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
  35. ^ Ivan Uremović SP 1967.
  36. ^ Sastav SP 1978.
  37. ^ Serdarušić SP 1978.
  38. ^ Jugoslavija-Island
  39. ^ Jugoslavija-DDR
  40. ^ Jugoslavija-Španjolska
  41. ^ Jugoslavija-SSSR
  42. ^ "Protiv Japana: Na današnji su dan prvi put zaigrali "kauboji"". 24 sata (in Croatian).
  43. ^ "Povijest". hrs.hr (in Croatian).
  44. ^ "Na današnji dan MOO je priznao Hrvatski olimpijski odbor". sportnet.rtl.hr/ (in Croatian).
  45. ^ "Na današnji dan MOO je priznao Hrvatski olimpijski odbor". http://sportnet.rtl.hr/ (in Croatian).
  46. ^ "Men Handball I European Championship 1994 Portugal". todor66.com.
  47. ^ "Men Handball XIV World Championship 1995 Iceland". todor66.com.
  48. ^ "Men Handball II European Championship 1996 Spain". todor66.com.
  49. ^ "OLIMPIJSKE IGRE U ATLANTI 1996. GODINE: NAJVEĆI USPJEH U POVIJESTI HRVATSKOG SPORTA". arhiv.slobodnadalmacija.hr (in Croatian).
  50. ^ "Atlanta 1996". sportnet.hr (in Croatian).
  51. ^ "Nije se ponovila Atlanta 1996 i put preko Francuza do prvog olimpijskog zlata za Hrvatsku". index.hr (in Croatian).
  52. ^ "Povijesne Igre u SAD-u: Zbog rukometaša smo prvi put čuli 'Lijepu našu'". gol.dnevnik.hr (in Croatian).
  53. ^ "SPOMENAR: Gdje su danas pripadnici slavne generacije iz Atlante?". germanijak.hr (in Croatian).
  54. ^ "Čarobnjak iz Umaga: Lino Červar". hrvatskareprezentacija.hr (in Croatian). Archived from the original on 2 February 2017. Retrieved 30 January 2017.
  55. ^ "Hrvatska – Saudijska Arabija: U nastavku osigurana pobjeda". sportnet.rtl.hr (in Croatian).
  56. ^ "Hrvatska prvak svijeta!". index.hr (in Croatian).
  57. ^ Struka Na SP 2003.
  58. ^ "Atena 2004. Novo zlato za rukomet i najveća berba medalja do tada". gol.dnevnik.hr/ (in Croatian).
  59. ^ Struka Na OI 2004.
  60. ^ Struka Na SP 2003.
  61. ^ Struka Na SP 2003.
  62. ^ Struka Na SP 2003.
  63. ^ Struka Na SP 2003.
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