The Croatia national under-19 football team represents Croatia in international football matches for players aged 19 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 Mladi vatreni ('Young Blazers'). So far, the Mladi vatreni have qualified for five UEFA European Under-19 Championships, namely in 1998, 2000, 2010, 2012 and 2016. Croatia won third place twice (1996 and 2010), its greatest success in the tournament so far.
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.
Stadium: Estádio do FC Vizela Attendance: 104 Referee: Evangelos Manouchos (Greece) Assistant referees: Konstantinos Nikolaidis (Greece) Assistant referees: Andre Filipe Nogueira Dias (Portugal) Fourth official: Carlos Andre Fernandes Macedo (Portugal)
Stadium: Cidade de Barcelos Attendance: 2012 Referee: Robert Jones (England) Assistant referees: Wade Smith (England) Assistant referees: Konstantinos Nikolaidis (Greece) Fourth official: Evangelos Manouchos (Greece)
Champions Runners-up Third place Fourth place Tournament played fully or partially on home soil
Prior to 1990, Croatian players played for the Yugoslavia Under-18 team. Although the Croatian team was formed in the early 1990s after the breakup of Yugoslavia, the Under-18 team had to wait for UEFA to officially accept Croatian Football Federation's membership bid in order to be included in UEFA-governed competitions. Croatia's membership was accepted in June 1993 and the first continental competition Croatia's under-18 team took part in was the qualification for the 1994 European Under-18 Championship. In 2001 UEFA changed the player eligibility dates and from 2002 onwards the continental championship is known as UEFA European Under-19 Championship. The tournament is held every year and serves as the qualifying tournament for FIFA U-20 World Cup which is held every two years.
^The team changed the name to North Macedonia national team in 2019, following the Prespa Agreement. However, Croatia have yet to play a game against them under the new name.
