The Croatia men's national handball team begins its Men's EHF EURO 2028 qualification campaign on Wednesday, 4 November 2026, with a home match against Lithuania in Split. The Group 1 fixture kicks off at 17:00 CET, aiming for a strong start despite recent defeats and the departure of key players.

The team enters this cycle on the back of a difficult run of form. In their last four matches, they have recorded just one win against three losses, with a streak of three consecutive defeats only ending last month. Their most recent loss was a 1-2 defeat to Spain on 6 October, preceded by a heavy 0-7 loss to England. These results add pressure to the start of the qualifiers.

New Challenges in Group 1

In qualifying Group 1, alongside Lithuania, Croatia will also face the Netherlands and Finland. The top two teams from the group and the four best third-placed sides will secure a place at the final tournament in Lisbon, Zürich, Madrid, and Valencia in January 2027. Croatia has a rich history at the European Championship, with three silver and four bronze medals, and are also silver medallists from the 2025 World Championship and bronze medallists from EHF EURO 2026.

However, the squad is in a period of transition following the retirement of experienced players like Domagoj Duvnjak. One Croatian player noted that the atmosphere within the group remains positive. "It is always nice to be with the national team, and the atmosphere in the squad is really good," he said. Yet, he is aware of the challenges ahead. "We have to be careful with both Lithuania and Finland," he added.

Context and Next Steps

Following this opener, Croatia will face England away in their next qualifier on 12 November. England currently sits top of their qualifying group, presenting another stern test. In their last meeting, Croatia suffered a 0-7 defeat, and prior to that lost 1-2 to Spain, where their only goal was scored by Ivan Perišić in the 17th minute.

Aside from Croatia, qualifiers for seven other groups also begin on Wednesday. Debutant coaches in this cycle will include the Netherlands' Mark Bult, Norway's Magnus Andersson, Hungary's László Sótonyi, Romania's Sandu Iacob, and Luxembourg's Didier Dinart.

For Croatia, the first step is clear: three points against Lithuania in Split to build momentum towards qualification and halt the negative run.

Read the full report at ehfeuro.eurohandball.com