Croatia national under-17 football team

Croatia U17
Nickname(s)	Mali Vatreni (The Young Blazers)
Association	Croatian Football Federation (HNS)
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Marijan Budimir
Most caps	Milan Badelj (28)
Top scorer	Nikola Kalinić (15)
FIFA code	CRO
First colours	Second colours
First international
	Croatia 1–0 Hungary ; (Donji Miholjac, Croatia; 26 April 1993)
Biggest win
	Croatia 11–0 Andorra ; (Donji Tavankut, Serbia; 29 September 2004)
Biggest defeat
	Croatia 0–5 Norway ; (Tallinn, Estonia; 25 October 2006) Croatia 0–5 England ; (Pula, Croatia; 28 September 2016)
European Championship
Appearances	10 (first in 1996)
Best result	Third place (2001)
World Cup
Appearances	3 (first in 2001)
Best result	Quarter-finals (2015)
Website	hns-cff.hr

The Croatia national under-17 football team represents Croatia in international football matches for players aged 17 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 Mali vatreni ('Little Blazers'). So far, the Mali vatreni qualified for nine UEFA European Under-17 Championships. Croatia's greatest success in the tournament was third place in 2001. The team also finished fourth in 2005. Croatia also participated in three FIFA U-17 World Cups since its independence, in 2001, 2013 and 2015, being eliminated in quarter-finals in 2015, its biggest success so far in this tournament.

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

22 March 2023 (2023-03-22) 2023 Euro qualif Gr 7	Croatia	0–0	Norway	Sarpsborg, Norway
13:00	Reitan-Sunde 6' Thorstensen 76' Egeli 82'	Report	Sušak 59' Matković 88'	Stadium: Sarpsborg Stadium Attendance: 217 Referee: Marek Radina (CZE) Assistant referees: Martin Leska (CZE) Assistant referees: Pavlos Georgiou (CYP) Fourth official: Kyriakos Athanasiou (CYP)

25 March 2023 (2023-03-25) 2023 Euro qualif Gr 7	Belgium	0–1	Croatia	Fredrikstad, Norway
13:00	Mirisola 34'	Report	Matković 44' Živković 67' Kujundžić 70' 90+4' (pen.) Lalić 75'	Stadium: Fredrikstad Stadion Attendance: 152 Referee: Edgars Maļcevs (LVA) Assistant referees: Mārtiņš Svipsts (LVA) Assistant referees: Christer Jørgensen (NOR) Fourth official: Marius Lien (NOR)

28 March 2023 (2023-03-28) 2023 Euro qualif Gr 7	Slovenia	1–2	Croatia	Fredrikstad, Norway
17:00	Sojer 77' 84'	Report	Zebić 54' Rimac 57' Sušak 78'	Stadium: Fredrikstad Stadion Attendance: 80 Referee: Kyriakos Athanasiou (CYP) Assistant referees: Pavlos Georgiou (CYP) Assistant referees: Christer Jørgensen (NOR) Fourth official: Marius Lien (NOR)

18 May 2023 (2023-05-18) 2023 Euro Gr D	Croatia	0–1	England	Balmazújváros, Hungary
20:00	Levak 13'	Report	Nwaneri 8' Samuels-Smith 22' Lovelace 71' Boniface 80'	Stadium: Balmazújvárosi Városi Sportpálya Attendance: 700 Referee: David Smajc (SVN) Assistant referees: David Gabrovec (SVN) Assistant referees: Bartosz Heinig (POL) Fourth official: David Dickinson (SCO)

21 May 2023 (2023-05-21) 2023 Euro Gr D	Croatia	1–2	Switzerland	Debrecen, Hungary
16:30	Levak 32' 58' Utrobičić 45+2' Ivančić 89'	Report	Xhemalija 9' 11' Tswa 49' Akahomen 83'	Stadium: Nagyerdei Stadion Attendance: 710 Referee: Jamie Robinson (NIR) Assistant referees: Adam Jeffrey (NIR) Assistant referees: Mehmet Tugral (TUR) Fourth official: Atilla Karaoglan (TUR)

24 May 2023 (2023-05-24) 2023 Euro Gr D	Netherlands	1–1	Croatia	Balmazújváros, Hungary
15:00	Bal 16' 53'	Report	Puljić 66' Lalić 74' Ivančić 84' Majić 89'	Stadium: Balmazújvárosi Városi Sportpálya Attendance: 458 Referee: Radoslav Gidzhenov (BUL) Assistant referees: Andreu Simarro (AND) Assistant referees: David Gabrovec (SVN) Fourth official: David Smajc (SVN)

15 August 2023 (2023-08-15) 2023 Telki Cup	Croatia	2–1	Iceland	Telki, Hungary
	Ćutuk 13' Mikić 30'	Report	Porri 90+1'	Stadium: Globall Football Park

17 August 2023 (2023-08-17) 2023 Telki Cup	Croatia	1–0	Hungary	Telki, Hungary
	Matić 23'	Report	Porri 90+1'	Stadium: Globall Football Park

19 August 2023 (2023-08-19) 2023 Telki Cup	Croatia	5–1	Uzbekistan	Telki, Hungary
	Mićić 21', 57' Matić 48' Ora 80' Ćutuk 83'	Report	Anvarov 56'	Stadium: Globall Football Park

26 September 2023 (2023-09-26) Friendly	Croatia	3–2	Bosnia and Herzegovina	Oriovac, Croatia
16:30	Čutuk 38', 56' Matić 64'	Report	Alajbegović 36' (pen.) Gostimirović 90'	Stadium: Igralište NK Oriolik

28 September 2023 (2023-09-28) Friendly	Bosnia and Herzegovina	0–3	Croatia	Domaljevac, Bosnia and Herzegovina
12:00		Report	Čović 17' Tomić 33' Ćutuk 79'	Stadium: Stadion Jelas

3 November 2023 (2023-11-03) 2023 Euro qualif Gr 9	Kosovo	0–4	Croatia	Karlovac, Croatia
12:00	Paci 55'	Report	Čović 44' Čutuk 40' 48' Zebić 62' Barić 80'	Stadium: Stadion Branko Čavlović-Čavlek Referee: Mohammad Usman Aslam (NOR) Assistant referees: Jørgen Rønning Valstadsve (NOR) Assistant referees: Pascal Hirzel (SUI) Fourth official: Alessandro Dudic (SUI)

6 November 2023 (2023-11-06) 2023 Euro qualif Gr 9	Croatia	6–0	Faroe Islands	Karlovac, Croatia
13:00	Matić 13', 90' Milišić 34' Marić 49' Durdov 60' Čović 70' Kostelac 81' Ahmeti 88'	Report	Ravnsfjall 19' Benjaminsen 36'	Stadium: Stadion Branko Čavlović-Čavlek Referee: Mohammad Usman Aslam (NOR) Assistant referees: Jørgen Rønning Valstadsve (NOR) Assistant referees: Deniss Ševcenko (LVA) Fourth official: Edgars Maļcevs (LVA)

9 November 2023 (2023-11-09) 2023 Euro qualif Gr 9	Croatia	1–5	England	Karlovac, Croatia
13:00	Čutuk 52' Milišić 53' Baković 90+4'	Report	Moore 15', 54', 79' Mfuni 15' Mheuka 30' Derry 69' Noble 84'	Stadium: Stadion Branko Čavlović-Čavlek Referee: Edgars Maļcevs (LVA) Assistant referees: Deniss Ševcenko (LVA) Assistant referees: Jørgen Rønning Valstadsve (NOR) Fourth official: Mohammad Usman Aslam (NOR)

2024

9 February 2024 (2024-02-09) Friendly tournament	Greece	0–1	Croatia	Poreč, Croatia
15:15		Report	Ćutuk 81'	Stadium: Veli Jože

12 February 2024 (2024-02-12) Friendly tournament	Croatia	v	Turkey	Poreč, Croatia
15:15				Stadium: Veli Jože

15 February 2024 (2024-02-15) Friendly tournament	Croatia	v	Bulgaria	Poreč, Croatia
10:30				Stadium: Veli Jože

20 March 2024 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 5

Croatia

v

Germany

23 March 2024 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 5

Portugal

v

Croatia

26 March 2024 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 5

Republic of Ireland

v

Croatia

9 October 2024 (2024-10-09) 2025 Euro Qualifying Round 1	Albania	1–1	Croatia	Arena Kombëtare, Tirana
15:00	Kulla 66'	Report	Kurti 28' (o.g.)	Referee: Zorbay Küçük (Türkiye)

12 October 2024 (2024-10-12) 2025 Euro Qualifying Round 1	Croatia	7–0	Faroe Islands	Arena Kombëtare, Tirana
11:00	Smiljanić 10' P. Horvat 17', 63' N. Horvat 40' Mišura 55' Vojvodić 76' Kusanović 90+1'	Report		Referee: Matthew MacDermid (Scotland)

15 October 2024 (2024-10-15) 2025 Euro Qualifying Round 1	Croatia	3–1	Netherlands	Arena Kombëtare, Tirana
13:30	P. Horvat 16' Kusanović 22', 35'	Report	Acheampong 76'	Referee: Zorbay Küçük (Türkiye)

Players

Current squad

The following players were called up for the 2025 UEFA European Under-17 Championship qualification.^[1]
Match dates: 9–15 October 2024
Opposition: Albania, Faroe Islands and Netherlands
Caps and goals correct as of: 15 February 2024, after the match against Bulgaria

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1GK	Matej Grahovac	(2008-03-26) 26 March 2008 (age 16)	2	0	Osijek
1GK	Petar Nemet	(2008-07-15) 15 July 2008 (age 16)	0	0	Istra 1961

2DF	Mateo Čupić	(2008-05-04) 4 May 2008 (age 16)	1	0	Hajduk Split
2DF	Lukas Murica	(2008-08-07) 7 August 2008 (age 16)	1	0	Rijeka
2DF	Leon Jakirović	(2008-01-16) 16 January 2008 (age 16)	1	0	Dinamo Zagreb
2DF	Nikola Radnić	(2008-06-08) 8 June 2008 (age 16)	0	0	Dinamo Zagreb
2DF	Petar Zvonimir Kostelac	(2008-03-17) 17 March 2008 (age 16)	6	1	Lokomotiva Zagreb
2DF	Karlo Pajsar	(2008-03-07) 7 March 2008 (age 16)	10	0	Parma
2DF	Roko Mijatović	(2008-02-13) 13 February 2008 (age 16)	0	0	FC Bayern Munich

3MF	Borna Ivanda	(2008-08-02) 2 August 2008 (age 16)	0	0	Dugopolje
3MF	Filip Bokan	(2008-04-29) 29 April 2008 (age 16)	0	0	Hajduk Split
3MF	Roko Vojvodić	(2008-02-21) 21 February 2008 (age 16)	7	1	Hajduk Split
3MF	Pavle Smiljanić	(2008-05-08) 8 May 2008 (age 16)	3	0	Lokomotiva Zagreb
3MF	Niko Horvat	(2008-07-15) 15 July 2008 (age 16)	3	0	Borussia Mönchengladbach

4FW	Mateo Juričić	(2008-08-11) 11 August 2008 (age 16)	1	0	Hajduk Split
4FW	Bruno Mišura	(2008-08-16) 16 August 2008 (age 16)	0	0	Hajduk Split
4FW	Patrik Horvat	(2008-05-10) 10 May 2008 (age 16)	2	0	Dinamo Zagreb
4FW	Dražen Jaman	(2008-01-16) 16 January 2008 (age 16)	4	0	Osijek
4FW	Luka Petrović	(2008-01-04) 4 January 2008 (age 16)	0	0	Real Sociedad
4FW	Tino Kusanović	(2008-03-08) 8 March 2008 (age 16)	0	0	1. FC Nürnberg

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	Ivan Bosančić	(2007-06-24) 24 June 2007 (age 17)	0	0	Hajduk Split	v. Bosnia and Herzegovina, 28 September 2023
GK	Petar Katalinić	(2007-01-28) 28 January 2007 (age 17)	1	0	Osijek	v. Bulgaria, 15 February 2024
GK	Teo Kolar	(2007-01-24) 24 January 2007 (age 17)	1	0	Slaven Belupo	v. Bulgaria, 15 February 2024

DF	Roko Pavlović	(2007-01-08) 8 January 2007 (age 17)	0	0	Lokomotiva Zagreb	v. Bulgaria, 15 February 2024
DF	Luka Tomić	(2007-03-21) 21 March 2007 (age 17)	5	0	Istra 1961	v. Bulgaria, 15 February 2024
DF	Noa Mikić	(2007-01-27) 27 January 2007 (age 17)	5	0	Dinamo Zagreb	v. Belarus, 9 November 2023
DF	Rafael Markulin	(2007-08-22) 22 August 2007 (age 17)	0	0	Rudeš	v. Belarus, 9 November 2023

MF	Ivan Anić	(2007-01-16) 16 January 2007 (age 17)	3	0	Rudeš	v. Bulgaria, 15 February 2024
MF	Pavle Smiljanić	(2008-05-08) 8 May 2008 (age 16)	1	0	Lokomotiva Zagreb	v. Bulgaria, 15 February 2024
MF	Fran Peček	(2007-03-08) 8 March 2007 (age 17)	3	0	Lokomotiva Zagreb	v. Bulgaria, 15 February 2024
MF	Matija Subotić	(2007-12-18) 18 December 2007 (age 16)	1	0	Lokomotiva Zagreb	v. Belarus, 9 November 2023
MF	Davor Bistre	(2008-03-31) 31 March 2008 (age 16)	3	0	Hajduk Split	v. Belarus, 9 November 2023
MF	Petar Zvonimir Kostelac	(2008-03-17) 17 March 2008 (age 16)	3	1	Lokomotiva Zagreb	v. Belarus, 9 November 2023
MF	Andro Sokač	(2007-09-20) 20 September 2007 (age 17)	0	0	Slaven Belupo	v. Bosnia and Herzegovina, 28 September 2023
MF	Petar Pfeifer	(2007-01-03) 3 January 2007 (age 17)	0	0	Lokomotiva Zagreb	v. Bosnia and Herzegovina, 28 September 2023

FW	Duje Matić	(2007-02-17) 17 February 2007 (age 17)	3	2	Hajduk Split	v. Belarus, 9 November 2023
FW	Dražen Jaman	(2008-01-16) 16 January 2008 (age 16)	2	0	Osijek	v. Belarus, 9 November 2023
FW	Fran Kasumović	(2007-06-16) 16 June 2007 (age 17)	3	0	Gorica	v. Bulgaria, 15 February 2024

Competitive record

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

UEFA European Under-17 Championship record

Until the 1997 tournament, players born on or after 1 August the year they turned 17 years were eligible to compete. Since the 1998 tournament, the date limit has been moved back to 1 January.^[2] In 2001/2002 the competition was renamed the European Under-17 Championship, but the eligibility rules did not change.

UEFA European Under-17 Championship record										Qualifications record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad	GP	W	D	L	GF	GA	Year
1982	Part of Yugoslavia
1984
1985
1986
1987
1988
1989
1990
1991
1992	Not a UEFA member
1993	Not a UEFA member
1994	Did not qualify									4	1	2	1	7	6	1994
1995	Did not qualify									2	1	0	1	3	1	1995
1996	Quarter-finals	8/16	4	2	0	2	4	8	Squad	3	3	0	0	7	0	1996
1997	Did not qualify									2	1	1	0	2	1	1997
1998	Quarter-finals	7/16	4	1	1	2	3	4	Squad	3	2	1	0	9	1	1998
1999	Group stage	15/16	3	0	1	2	1	4	Squad	2	2	0	0	11	0	1999
2000	Did not qualify									3	1	1	1	3	4	2023
2001	Third place	3/16	6	4	0	2	9	7	Squad	2	2	0	0	7	1	2000
2002	Did not qualify									3	2	1	0	8	3	2002
2003										6	4	0	2	14	7	2003
2004										3	1	1	1	3	4	2004
2005	Fourth place	4/8	5	2	1	2	13	11	Squad	6	4	1	1	20	8	2005
2006	Did not qualify									3	1	1	1	2	1	2006
2007										3	1	0	2	8	11	2007
2008										6	4	1	1	13	1	2008
2009										6	5	0	1	11	4	2009
2010										6	4	1	1	9	5	2010
2011										6	2	4	0	6	3	2011
2012										3	1	0	2	5	6	2012
2013	Group stage	5/8	3	1	2	0	2	1	Squad	6	5	1	0	15	8	2013
2014	Did not qualify									3	1	0	2	1	3	2014
2015	Quarter-finals	7/16	5	3	2	0	5	1	Squad	6	5	1	0	18	2	2015
2016	Did not qualify									6	2	1	3	11	11	2016
2017	Group stage	14/16	3	0	1	2	2	6	Squad	Qualified as hosts
2018	Did not qualify									6	2	3	1	10	4	2018
2019	Did not qualify									6	3	2	1	10	6	2019
2020	Tournament and elite qualifying round cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic									3	3	0	0	9	3	2020
2021	Tournament and qualifying round cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic
2022	Did not qualify									3	1	0	2	3	2	2022
2023	Group stage	12/16	3	0	1	2	2	4	Squad	6	3	2	1	6	5	2023
2024	Group stage	9/16	3	0	3	0	3	3	Squad	6	3	1	2	19	11	2024
2025	To be determined									To be determined						2025
2026																2026
2027																2027
Total	Third place	10/41	39	13	12	14	44	49		123	70	26	27	250	122

Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out; correct as of 9 November 2023 after the match against England.

Matches
First match	France 2–0 Croatia (Scheibbs, Austria; 29 April 1996)
Biggest win	Switzerland 2–5 Croatia (Santa Croce sull'Arno, Italy; 8 May 2005)
Biggest defeat	Portugal 5–1 Croatia (Krems an der Donau, Austria; 6 May 1996)

FIFA U-17 World Cup record

FIFA U-17 World Cup record										Qualifications record
Year	Round	Position	GP	W	D*	L	GF	GA	Squad	Qualifications record
1985	Part of Yugoslavia
1987
1989
1991
1993	Not a FIFA member
1995	Did not qualify									UEFA European Under-17 Championship	1995
1997											1997
1999											1999
2001	Group stage	10/16	3	1	0	2	3	8	Squad		2001
2003	Did not qualify										2003
2005											2005
2007											2007
2009											2009
2011											2011
2013	Group stage	17/24	3	1	0	2	3	5	Squad		2013
2015	Quarter-finals	7/24	5	2	2	1	7	5	Squad		2015
2017	Did not qualify										2017
2019											2019
2023											2023
2025	to be determined										2025
Total	Quarter-finals	3/20	11	4	2	5	13	18

Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out; correct as of 1 November 2015 after the match against Mali.

Matches
First match	Trinidad and Tobago 1–2 Croatia (Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago; 13 September 2001)
Biggest win	Croatia 2–0 Germany (Concepción, Chile; 29 October 2015)
Biggest defeat	Croatia 0–4 Australia (Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago; 19 September 2001)

Other

Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
2001 Telki Cup	Third	3rd	4	1	3	0	7	4
2002 Telki Cup	Champions	1st	4	3	1	0	10	3
2003 Telki Cup	Group stage	5th	3	1	0	2	3	5
2004 Telki Cup	Group stage	6th	3	1	1	1	4	3
2005 Telki Cup	Runners-up	2nd	4	2	2	0	7	4
2006 Telki Cup	Sixth	6th	3	0	1	2	1	7
2007 Telki Cup	Champions	1st	3	3	0	0	3	0
2008 Telki Cup	Runners-up	2nd	3	2	1	0	6	2
2009 Telki Cup	Seventh	7th	3	1	1	1	6	4
2010 Telki Cup	Sixth	6th	3	1	0	2	4	4
2011 Telki Cup	Semi-finals	4th	3	2	1	0	4	3
2012 Telki Cup	Runners-up	2nd	3	1	1	1	6	4
2013 Telki Cup	Third	3rd	3	2	0	1	4	3
2015 Telki Cup	Runners-up	2nd	3	2	0	1	2	4
2017 Telki Cup	Champions	1st	3	1	2	0	6	3
2018 Telki Cup	Champions	1st	3	3	0	0	8	1
2019 Telki Cup	Champions	1st	3	3	0	0	14	5
2022 Telki Cup	Runners-up	2nd	3	1	2	0	10	5
2023 Telki Cup	Champions	1st	3	3	0	0	8	2
Total	6 titles	19/19	60	33	16	11	113	66

Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out; correct as of 19 August 2023 after the match against Uzbekistan.

Past squads

References

^ "Budimir: "Uvjeren sam da ćemo dostojno prezentirati hrvatski nogomet"" (in Croatian). Hrvatski nogometni savez. 8 October 2024. Retrieved 10 October 2024.
^ "European U-16/U-17 Championship". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 11 October 2017.

External links

UEFA Under-17 Official website
Youth level statistics at the Croatian Football Federation official website (in Croatian)
Croatia under-17 at Soccerway

[1] "Budimir: "Uvjeren sam da ćemo dostojno prezentirati hrvatski nogomet"" (in Croatian). Hrvatski nogometni savez. 8 October 2024. Retrieved 10 October 2024.

[2] "European U-16/U-17 Championship". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 11 October 2017.

[1]

[2]

v t e Croatia national football team
General	Croatian Football Federation History Managers
Statistics	Head to head Hat-tricks
Results	Pre-independence (1940–91) 1992–99 2000–09 2010–19 2020–present
Players	20+ caps 1–19 caps
World Cup Finals	Summary 1998 2002 2006 2014 2018 2022
UEFA Euro Finals	Summary 1996 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024
UEFA Nations League Finals	Summary 2023
Rivalries	Serbia
Matches	Croatia v Indonesia (1956) Croatia v United States (1990) 2018 FIFA World Cup final 2023 UEFA Nations League final
Goal scorers	Davor Šuker
Other teams	Men's B Under-23 Under-21 Under-20 Under-19 Under-18 Under-17 Under-16 Under-15 Women's Under-19 Under-17 Under-15

v t e Football in Croatia
Croatian Football Federation (HNS)
National teams	Men's: A B U23 U21 U20 U19 U18 U17 U16 U15 Women's: A U19 U17
League system	Men's: HNL 1. NL 2. NL 3. NL 1. ŽNL 2. ŽNL Women's: 1. HNLŽ 2. HNLŽ
Domestic cups	Men's: Cup Super Cup Women's: Cup
Seasons	1992 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25
Records List of clubs List of venues International players Men Women

Recent results and fixtures

2023

2024

Players

Current squad

Recent call-ups

Competitive record

UEFA European Under-17 Championship record

FIFA U-17 World Cup record

Other

Past squads

See also

References

External links