Croatia national football team have officially announced their 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, becoming the first country in Group L to unveil their final team ahead of next month’s global tournament in North America.

The tournament, which will be jointly hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, will feature an expanded format of 48 nations for the first time in FIFA World Cup history.

Ghana secured one of Africa’s nine automatic qualification slots and have been drawn in a difficult Group L alongside England national football team, Croatia and Panama national football teams.

The Black Stars will open their campaign against Panama before facing England, with their final and potentially decisive group game scheduled against Croatia.

Modrić Leads Experienced Croatia Squad

Croatia coach Zlatko Dalić has named a strong and experienced squad as the European side seek another deep run at the World Cup after their impressive performances in recent editions.

Leading the squad is veteran midfielder Luka Modrić, who remains the heartbeat of the Croatian national team despite approaching the latter stages of his illustrious career.

The former Real Madrid and AC Milan midfielder is expected to captain the side once again as Croatia aim to build on their recent World Cup pedigree.

Croatia reached the 2018 FIFA World Cup final in Russia before losing to France and followed that achievement with another strong showing at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where they finished third.

Strong Blend Of Experience And Attack

Also included in the squad are experienced attackers Ivan Perišić, Andrej Kramarić and Ante Budimir.

Croatia’s midfield options have also been strengthened with the inclusion of Mario Pašalić and Marco Pašalić.

Defensively, one of the key figures expected to anchor the team is Joško Gvardiol, the highly-rated Manchester City defender widely regarded as one of the best young defenders in world football.

Ghana Yet To Name Final Squad

Croatia’s early squad announcement now places attention on Ghana and the other teams in Group L, with the Black Stars expected to release their final squad in the coming days.

New Ghana coach Carlos Queiroz is expected to finalise his selections soon as Ghana continue preparations for their return to the FIFA World Cup stage.

The Black Stars will head into the tournament hoping to improve on previous World Cup performances, having reached the quarter-finals in 2010 — the best achievement by an African team at the competition alongside Cameroon, Senegal and Morocco.