Croatia at the FIFA World Cup Croatia at the FIFA World Cup Croatia national football team have appeared in the FIFA World Cup on five occasions (in 1998, 2002, 2006, 2014 and 2018) since gaining independence in 1991. Before that, from 1930 to 1990 Croatia was part of Yugoslavia. Their best result thus far was silver position at the 2018 final, where they lost 4-2 to France. In the draw for the final tournament, held on 4 December 1997 at Stade Vélodrome in Marseille, Croatia was drawn to play in Group H, along with two other teams which qualified for the World Cup for the first
History of the FIFA World Cup criteria for advancement to knockout phase is as follows: As of the 2014 World Cup, lots have only been drawn once in tournament history. However, they were used to separate second and third place in a group (Republic of Ireland and the Netherlands in 1990) where both were already assured of qualification. Thus, a team has never been eliminated based upon drawn lots. History of the FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup was first held in 1930, when FIFA, the world's football governing body, decided to stage an international men’s football tournament under the era of FIFA president Jules