Below is a list of the head coaches ofCroatia national football team, their statistics and achievements in the national team. TheCroatian Football Federation considers the date of its foundation to be 1912,[1] when the country itself was still part ofAustria-Hungary. In 1919, all sports federations in Croatia came under the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes.[2][3] On 6 August 1939, the HNS regained its independence. On 17 July 1941,FIFA recognized the HNS as the national association of theIndependent State of Croatia and considered it a member until the formation of theSocialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1945.[4][5] Croatian football players from 1945 to 1990 played forYugoslavia national team.
The first head coach of the Croatian team was Hugo Kienert, who only formally held this position in 1918–1919, since in those days it was not possible to convene the national team. On the eve and during theWorld War II, the Croats held a number of friendly meetings, in which it was headed by local experts:Jozo Jakopić,Rudolf Hitrec,Bogdan Cuvaj andBernard Hügl.[6] During the period of existence of socialist Yugoslavia (from 1945 to 1991), Croatia played only one friendly match in 1956. In this match with theIndonesian national team, it was led by a triumvirate of coaches (Bruno Knežević,Leo Lemešić andFranjo Wölfl). During the period of independence in the early 1990s, the Croatian national team played friendly matches in whichDražan Jerković,Stanko Poklepović andVlatko Marković were its head coaches.
In 1994, the national team was headed byMiroslav Blažević. It was under his leadership that the Croatian national team achieved its first and impressive success. First, he managed to qualify for the1996 European Championship,[7] unexpectedly ahead of the Italians, and to leave the group at the championship itself. Under the leadership of Blažević, the Croats were the loudest sensation at the1998 FIFA World Cup in France, where they won the bronze medal.[8]
In the 2000s and the first half of the 2010s, Croats, led by such specialists asMirko Jozić,Otto Barić,Zlatko Kranjčar,Slaven Bilić,Igor Štimac,Niko Kovač andAnte Čačić, regularly made their way to the final stages of world and continental championships, where they occupied either third places in their groups, or stopped at the first stages of the playoffs.
The current head coach of the national team since 7 October 2017 isZlatko Dalić.[9] He temporarily led the team, which had decisive matches in the selection for the2018 FIFA World Cup. Having brought his national team to the final part of the tournament, Dalić signed a permanent contract with the HNS. At the World Cup itself, the Croats were the underdog sensations, reaching thefinal match,[10][11] where they lost againstFrance team with a score of 2–4.[12] Four years later, under the leadership of the same coach, they took the bronze medals of the2022 FIFA World Cup,[13] in the quarterfinals of which they sensationally defeatedBrazil.[14][15]
The following table provides a summary of the complete record of each Croatia manager's results in theFIFA World Cup,UEFA European Championship andUEFA Nations League Finals.
| Coach | Nat | First match | Last match | Pld | W | D | L | Win % | Tournaments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jozo Jakopić[16] |  | 2 April 1940 | 8 December 1940 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 50.00% | |
| Rudolf Hitrec[17] |  | 15 June 1941 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.00% | ||
| Bogdan Cuvaj[18] | | 7 September 1941 | 6 June 1943 | 13 | 6 | 3 | 4 | 46.15% | |
| Bernard Hügl[19] | | 9 April 1944 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% | ||
| Bogdan Cuvaj |  | 12 September 1956 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% | ||
| Dražan Jerković[20] |  | 17 October 1990 | 19 June 1991 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% | |
| Stanko Poklepović[21] | | 5 July 1992 | 22 October 1992 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 25.00% | |
| Vlatko Marković[22] | | 25 June 1993 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% | ||
| Miroslav Blažević[23] | | 23 March 1994 | 11 October 2000 | 73 | 34 | 24 | 15 | 46.57% |  1996 European Championship – Quarter-finals1998 World Cup – Third place 2000 European Championship – Failed to qualify |
| Tomislav Ivić (c)[a][24] | | 16 November 1994 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00% | ||
| Mirko Jozić[25] | | 28 February 2001 | 13 June 2002 | 18 | 9 | 6 | 3 | 50.00% | 2002 World Cup – Group stage |
| Otto Barić[26] | | 21 August 2002 | 21 June 2004 | 24 | 11 | 8 | 5 | 45.83% | 2004 European Championship – Group stage |
| Zlatko Kranjčar[27] | | 18 August 2004 | 22 June 2006 | 25 | 11 | 8 | 6 | 44.00% | 2006 World Cup – Group stage |
| Slaven Bilić[28] | | 16 August 2006 | 18 June 2012 | 65 | 42 | 15 | 8 | 64.61% | 2008 European Championship – Quarter-finals2010 World Cup – Failed to qualify2012 European Championship – Group stage |
| Igor Štimac[29] | | 15 August 2012 | 15 October 2013 | 15 | 8 | 2 | 5 | 53.33% | |
| Niko Kovač[30] | | 15 November 2013 | 6 September 2015 | 19 | 10 | 5 | 4 | 52.63% | 2014 World Cup – Group stage |
| Ante Čačić[31] | | 10 October 2015 | 6 October 2017 | 25 | 15 | 6 | 4 | 60.00% | 2016 European Championship – Round of 16 |
| Zlatko Dalić[32] | | 9 October 2017 | 18 November 2024 | 93 | 45 | 25 | 23 | 48.39% | 2018 World Cup – Runners-up2020 European Championship – Round of 162022 World Cup – Third place2024 European Championship – Group stage |
| Total | 2 April 1940 | 18 November 2024 | 382 | 198 | 103 | 81 | 51.83% | 12 out of 14 | |
Last updated: vs. Portugal, 18 November 2024.Source: Croatian Football Federation