Croatia_women's_national_football_team Knowpia

Croatia women
Nickname(s)	Lavice (The Lionesses)
Association	Croatian Football Federation (HNS)
Confederation	UEFA (Europe)
Head coach	Nenad Gračan
Captain	Doris Bačić
Most caps	Iva Landeka (102)
Top scorer	Maja Joščak (20)
FIFA code	CRO
First colours	Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current	59 1 (15 March 2024)
Highest	44 (July 2003 – June 2005)
Lowest	65 (November 2010; July 2011)
First international
	Slovenia 3–2 Croatia ; (Ižakovci, Slovenia; 28 October 1993)
Biggest win
	Croatia 8–2 Slovenia ; (Kecskemét, Hungary; 27 May 2001)
Biggest defeat
	Romania 10–0 Croatia ; (Bucharest, Romania; 2 October 2004)
Website	hns-cff.hr

The Croatia women's national football team represents Croatia in international women's football matches. 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 Lavice ('Lionesses'). So far, the Lavice have not qualified for any major tournament.

History edit

After winning independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, the newly established Croatian Football Federation immediately moved toward creating separate national football teams to represent the country, which included the establishment of the women's team. Three years after the men's team debut, the women's team of Croatia officially marked their international debut, playing against neighbouring Slovenia in a friendly on 28 October 1993, where Croatia lost 2–3 away.

Since its inception, the women's team of Croatia has suffered from the lack of coverage from the increasingly successful men's side. Most of Croatia's female footballers, unlike the male ones, are made up of only amateur or part-timers, and thus they are not adequately trained. As for the result, while the men's team has been largely competitive and qualified for several UEFA European Championship and FIFA World Cup, the women's team is unable to repeat the same as the men's one, and has a tendency of being finished near bottom or bottom of the qualifications for UEFA Women's Championship and FIFA Women's World Cup.

Team image edit

Nicknames edit

The Croatia women's national football team has been known or nicknamed as the "Lavice".^{[citation needed]}

Rivalry edit

Like the men's counterparts, the Croatian women's team also maintained a rivalry with its neighbour Serbia. However, unlike the men's, the women's team of Croatia, long suffered from lack of investment, could not demonstrate its domination against its Serbian arch-rival.

Recent results and fixtures edit

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

Legend

Win Draw Lose Fixture

2023 edit

22 September Nations League B Gr 2	Croatia	2–1	Romania	Varaždin, Croatia
20:15	Rudelić 45+1' Pezelj 54'	Report	Carp 31'	Stadium: Stadion Varteks Referee: Maria Marotta (Italy) Assistant referees: Veronica Vettorel (Italy) Giulia Tempestilli (Italy) Fourth official: Deborah Bianchi (Italy)

26 September Nations League B Gr 2	Slovakia	4–0	Croatia	Senec, Slovakia
18:00	Hmírová 24', 60', 73' Lemešová 30' 45+1' Morávková 34'	Report	Krajinović 78'	Stadium: NTC Senec Referee: Alexandra Collin (France) Assistant referees: Clémentine Dubreil (Italy) Nabila Zaouak (Italy) Fourth official: Emeline Rochebiliere (Italy)

27 October 2023–24 UEFA Nations League	Finland	3–0	Croatia	Helsinki
17:45	Sällström 6' Kunštek 65' (o.g.) Franssi 90+3'	Report		Stadium: Bolt Arena, Referee: Désirée Grundbacher (Switzerland)

31 October 2023–24 UEFA Nations League	Croatia	0–2	Finland	Šibenik
18:00		Report	Summanen 5', 12'	Stadium: Stadion Šubićevac, Referee: Teresa Oliveira (Portugal)

1 December 2023 (2023-12-01) 2023–24 UEFA Nations League	Croatia	2–0	Slovakia	Velika Gorica
18:00	Krajinović 53' Dordić 60'	Report		Stadium: Stadion Radnik Attendance: 347 Referee: Hristiyana Guteva (Bulgaria)

5 December 2023 (2023-12-05) 2023–24 UEFA Nations League	Romania	0–1	Croatia	Bucharest
19:00 (20:00 EET)		Report		Stadium: Stadionul Arcul de Triumf Referee: Rasa Grigonė (Lithuania)

2024 edit

23 February 2023–24 UEFA Nations League play-offs	Croatia	0–3	Norway	Osijek, Croatia
				Stadium: Opus Arena Referee: Abigail Byrne (England)

27 February 2023–24 UEFA Nations League play-offs	Norway	5–0 (8–0 agg.)	Croatia	Stavanger
				Stadium: Viking Stadion Referee: Veronika Kovarova (Czech Republic)
Note: Norway won 8–0 on aggregate, and therefore both teams remained in their respective leagues.

5 April Euro 2025 qualifying	Wales	4–0	Croatia	Wrexham
	Fishlock 4', 50' Rowe 51' James 56'	Report		Stadium: Racecourse Ground Referee: Zuzana Valentová (Slovakia)

9 April Euro 2025 qualifying	Croatia	1–0	Ukraine	Zaprešić
		Report		Stadium: Ivan Laljak-Ivić Stadium Referee: Zulema González (Spain)

Coaching staff edit

Position	Staff
Head Coach	Nenad Gračan
Assistant Coach	Jure Perković
Assistant Coach	Nenad Glušica
Assistant Coach	Helena Hercigonja-Moulton
Goalkeeping Coach	Blaž Bugarin

Source: [1]

Players edit

Current squad edit

The following players were called up for the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 qualifying matches against Wales and the Ukraine on 5 and 9 April 2024 respectively.^[2]

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
1	1GK	Doris Bačić	(1995-02-23) 23 February 1995 (age 29)	77	0	Napoli
12	1GK	Ana Filipović	(2003-07-04) 4 July 2003 (age 20)	0	0	Dinamo Zagreb
23	1GK	Laura Fiket	(2002-06-05) 5 June 2002 (age 21)	0	0	Split

4	2DF	Leonarda Balog	(1993-02-05) 5 February 1993 (age 31)	65	1	St. Pölten
5	2DF	Kristina Nevrkla	(2003-06-17) 17 June 2003 (age 20)	88	4	Osijek
3	2DF	Ana Jelenčić	(1994-06-08) 8 June 1994 (age 29)	47	1	Servette
15	2DF	Maria Kunštek	(1998-11-06) 6 November 1998 (age 25)	28	0	Osijek
	2DF	Janja Čanjevac	(1999-08-08) 8 August 1999 (age 24)	9	0	Hajduk
13	2DF	Tea Varćević	(2006-04-25) 25 April 2006 (age 17)

22	3MF	Izabela Lojna	(1992-05-11) 11 May 1992 (age 31)	81	12	Osijek
7	3MF	Petra Pezelj	(1998-10-28) 28 October 1998 (age 25)	41	2	Trabzonspor
6	3MF	Tea Krznarić	(2004-08-09) 9 August 2004 (age 19)	14	0	LASK
	3MF	Fatjesa Gegollaj	(2001-11-05) 5 November 2001 (age 22)			Al-Ula
16	3MF	Ivana Kirilenko	(2000-06-21) 21 June 2000 (age 23)	8	0	Dux Logroño
	3MF	Veronika Terzić	(2000-02-16) 16 February 2000 (age 24)			Sarajevo
	3MF	Bianca Rose Galić

9	4FW	Ivana Rudelić	(1992-01-25) 25 January 1992 (age 32)	44	17	Basel
17	4FW	Karla Jedvaj	(2000-11-16) 16 November 2000 (age 23)	13	0	Blau-Weiß Linz
	4FW	Andrea Glibo	(2002-04-05) 5 April 2002 (age 22)			Sturm
19	4FW	Paula Vidović	(2003-06-16) 16 June 2003 (age 20)			FC Ingolstadt 04
	4FW	Ana Maria Marković

Recent call-ups edit

The following players were named to a squad in the last 12 months.

This list may be incomplete.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Danijela Vidović	(2003-06-05) 5 June 2003 (age 20)	0	0	Rijeka	Slovakia, 26 September 2023

DF	Lucia Domazet	(2003-06-17) 17 June 2003 (age 20)	10	0	Split	Norway, 5 April 2024
DF	Barbara Živković	(2005-02-15) 15 February 2005 (age 19)			Osijek	Norway, 5 April 2024
DF	Antonia Dulčić	(1997-02-04) 4 February 1997 (age 27)	24	0	ALG Spor	Norway, 5 April 2024

MF	Mia Došen	(2003-09-25) 25 September 2003 (age 20)			Parkside	Slovakia, 26 September 2023
MF	Helena Spajić	(2000-02-08) 8 February 2000 (age 24)	25	0	Dinamo Zagreb	Finland, 31 October 2023
MF	Ella Ljuština	(2002-05-10) 10 May 2002 (age 21)	11	1	Grasshopper	Romania, 5 December 2023
MF	Antea Batarilo	(2005-10-02) 2 October 2005 (age 18)			Austria Wien	Romania, 5 December 2023
MF	Ivana Slipčević	(1998-08-23) 23 August 1998 (age 25)	11	0	FC Ingolstadt 04	Norway, 5 April 2024
MF	Ružica Krajinović	(2002-05-10) 10 May 2002 (age 21)	7	0	Sturm	Norway, 5 April 2024
MF	Anela Lubina	(1995-12-18) 18 December 1995 (age 28)	43	2	Osijek	Norway, 5 April 2024

FW	Selma Kajdić	(1996-05-03) 3 May 1996 (age 27)	2	0	Dornbirn	Slovakia, 26 September 2023
FW	Jelena Đorđić	(2002-01-27) 27 January 2002 (age 22)			First Vienna	Romania, 5 December 2023
FW	Nika Petarić	(2002-06-02) 2 June 2002 (age 21)	2	0	Dinamo Zagreb	Romania, 5 December 2023

Competitive record edit

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

FIFA Women's World Cup edit

FIFA Women's World Cup record										Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad	Pos	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1991	Part of Yugoslavia
1995	Did not enter
1999	Did not enter
2003	Did not qualify									2/5	8	4	1	3	16	11
2007										2/4	6	3	0	3	11	11
2011										6/6	10	0	2	8	4	27
2015										4/6	10	2	2	6	7	20
2019										5/5	8	0	3	5	5	20
2023										4/6	10	3	1	6	6	18
2027	To be determined									To be determined
Total		0/9							—	0/6	52	12	9	31	49	107

Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out; correct as of 6 September 2022 after the match against Lithuania.

Matches
First match	–
Biggest win	–
Biggest defeat	–

UEFA Women's Championship edit

UEFA Women's Championship record										Qualification record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad	Pos	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1969	Part of Yugoslavia
1979
1984
1987
1989
1991
1993	Did not enter
1995	Did not qualify									2/4	6	3	1	2	8	18
1997										4/4	8	0	1	7	2	23
2001										4/4	6	1	0	5	7	19
2005										3/5	8	4	1	3	17	22
2009										3/4	3	2	0	1	9	6
2013										5/5	8	0	1	7	6	26
2017										4/5	8	2	1	5	8	15
2022										4/5	8	2	1	5	7	19
2025	To be determined									To be determined
Total		0/15							—	0/8	55	14	6	35	64	148

Draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out; correct as of 23 February 2021 after the match against Romania.

Matches
First match	–
Biggest win	–
Biggest defeat	–

UEFA Women's Nations League edit

UEFA Women's Nations League												Finals record
Season	LG	GP	Pos	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	P/R	RK	Year	Round	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	Squad
2023–24	B	2	2nd	6	3	0	3	5	10		23rd	2024	Did not qualify
Total				6	3	0	3	5	10			Total	0/1	0	0	0	0	0	0	—

Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks; correct as of 5 December 2023 after the match against Romania.

Matches
First match	Croatia 2–1 Romania (Varaždin, Croatia; 22 September 2023)
Biggest win	Croatia 2–0 Slovakia (Velika Gorica, Croatia; 1 December 2023)
Biggest defeat	Slovakia 4–0 Croatia (Senec, Slovakia; 26 September 2023)

Individual statistics edit

As of 5 December 2023

Most capped players edit

Iva Landeka has played 102 matches for Croatia, making her most capped Croatian player

Rank	Player	Caps	Goals	Career
1	Iva Landeka	102	14	2006–2022
2	Sandra Žigić	94	10	2005–2019
3	Kristina Nevrkla	87	4	2008–
4	Izabela Lojna	82	12	2010–
5	Maja Joščak	77	20	2006–2019
5	Doris Bačić	77	0	2011–
7	Leonarda Balog	68	1	2009–
8	Kristina Šundov	59	8	2003–2020
9	Violeta Baban	58	8	2002–2016
10	Ana Jelenčić	47	1	2011–

Top goalscorers edit

With 20 goals, Maja Joščak is the top goalscorer for the Croatia's women's national football team

Rank	Player	Goals	Caps	Ratio	Career
1	Maja Joščak	20	77	0.26	2006–2019
2	Ivana Rudelić	18	46	0.38	2015–
3	Katarina Kolar	16	40	0.4	2006–2014
4	Iva Landeka	14	102	0.14	2006–2022
5	Marina Koljenik	13	35	0.37	1994–2007
6	Ljiljana Jakšić	12	22	0.55	1995–2005
6	Izabela Lojna	12	81	0.15	2010–
8	Sandra Žigić	10	94	0.11	2005–2019
9	Violeta Baban	8	58	0.14	2003–2020
9	Kristina Šundov	8	59	0.14	2002–2016

References edit

^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Women's World Ranking". FIFA. 15 March 2024. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
^ hrvatske ženske reprezentacije Nenad Gračan objavio je popis igračica za početak kvalifikacija za #WEURO2025! 🔥