Croatia national under-17 football team

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Croatia women's national under-17 football team.

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.

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

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

Croatia  v  Norway

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)

Belgium  v  Croatia

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)

Slovenia  v  Croatia

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)

Croatia  v  England

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)

Croatia  v   Switzerland

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)

Netherlands  v  Croatia

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)

Croatia  v  Iceland

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

Croatia  v  Hungary

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

Croatia  v  Uzbekistan

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

Croatia  v  Bosnia and Herzegovina

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

Bosnia and Herzegovina  v  Croatia

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

Kosovo  v  Croatia

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)

Croatia  v  Faroe Islands

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)

Croatia  v  England

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

Greece  v  Croatia

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

Croatia  v  Turkey

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

Croatia  v  Bulgaria

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

Croatia  v  Germany

20 March 2024 (2024-03-20) 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 5

Croatia

v

Germany

Portugal  v  Croatia

23 March 2024 (2024-03-23) 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 5

Portugal

v

Croatia

Republic of Ireland  v  Croatia

26 March 2024 (2024-03-26) 2023 Euro elite qualif Gr 5

Republic of Ireland

v

Croatia

Albania  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)

Croatia  v  Faroe Islands

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)

Croatia  v  Netherlands

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 matches against Ukraine, Slovakia and Italy on 19, 22 and 26 March; respectively.^[1]

Caps and goals correct as of: 26 March 2025, after the match against Italy

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
	1GK	Matej Grahovac	(2008-03-26) 26 March 2008 (age 17)	11	0	Osijek
	1GK	Petar Nemet	(2008-07-15) 15 July 2008 (age 17)	3	0	Istra 1961
	2DF	Karlo Pajsar	(2008-03-07) 7 March 2008 (age 17)	20	0	Parma
	2DF	Petar Zvonimir Kostelac	(2008-03-17) 17 March 2008 (age 17)	16	2	Lokomotiva Zagreb
	2DF	Leon Jakirović	(2008-01-16) 16 January 2008 (age 17)	9	0	Dinamo Zagreb
	2DF	Lukas Murica	(2008-08-07) 7 August 2008 (age 17)	9	0	Rijeka
	2DF	Roko Mijatović	(2008-02-13) 13 February 2008 (age 17)	8	0	Bayern Munich
	2DF	Nikola Radnić	(2008-06-08) 8 June 2008 (age 17)	7	0	Dinamo Zagreb
	2DF	Raul Kumar	(2008-02-06) 6 February 2008 (age 17)	6	0	Istra 1961
	3MF	Roko Vojvodić	(2008-02-21) 21 February 2008 (age 17)	18	2	Hajduk Split
	3MF	Pavle Smiljanić	(2008-05-08) 8 May 2008 (age 17)	11	1	Lokomotiva Zagreb
	3MF	Krešimir Radoš	(2008-01-14) 14 January 2008 (age 17)	9	0	Dinamo Zagreb
	3MF	Niko Horvat	(2008-07-15) 15 July 2008 (age 17)	8	2	Borussia Mönchengladbach
	3MF	Borna Ivanda	(2008-08-02) 2 August 2008 (age 17)	7	0	Dugopolje
	3MF	Jona Benkotić	(2009-03-20) 20 March 2009 (age 16)	5	2	Dinamo Zagreb
	4FW	Patrik Horvat	(2008-05-10) 10 May 2008 (age 17)	12	4	Dinamo Zagreb
	4FW	Dražen Jaman	(2008-01-16) 16 January 2008 (age 17)	11	2	Osijek
	4FW	Bruno Mišura	(2008-08-16) 16 August 2008 (age 17)	9	1	Hajduk Split
	4FW	Tino Kusanović	(2008-03-08) 8 March 2008 (age 17)	8	6	1. FC Nürnberg
	4FW	Andrija Burcar	(2008-01-19) 19 January 2008 (age 17)	3	0	Parma

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
DF	Mateo Čupić	(2008-05-04) 4 May 2008 (age 17)	1	0	Hajduk Split	v.  Netherlands, 15 October 2024
MF	Filip Bokan	(2008-04-29) 29 April 2008 (age 17)	0	0	Hajduk Split	v.  Netherlands, 15 October 2024
FW	Mateo Juričić	(2008-08-11) 11 August 2008 (age 17)	1	0	Hajduk Split	v.  Netherlands, 15 October 2024
FW	Luka Petrović	(2008-01-04) 4 January 2008 (age 17)	0	0	Real Sociedad	v.  Netherlands, 15 October 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
1994	Did not qualify										4	1	2	1	7	6	1994
1995											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											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
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

• 1999 UEFA U-16 European Championship squad
• 2001 UEFA U-16 European Championship squad
• 2001 FIFA U-17 World Championship squad
• 2005 UEFA U-17 European Championship squad
• 2013 UEFA U-17 European Championship squad
• 2013 FIFA U-17 World Cup squad
• 2015 UEFA U-17 European Championship squad
• 2015 FIFA U-17 World Cup squad
• 2017 UEFA U-17 European Championship squad

See also

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