Croatia's under 16 men's water polo team won gold at the world championships! They won their first world title with a victory in the final against Spain. In a closely contested final, neither team was able to create a lead of more than one goal. The Spanish team, who were defending their title, took the lead with a goal from Adri Lopez with 3:24 minutes left in the game. Srzić equalized in the next attack, and then the Croatian defense, led by goalkeeper Luko Vezilić, became impenetrable in the last three minutes. Ante Domazet scored for 8-7, just over two minutes before the end. When Deni Sappe scored two goals for the first time on the match for the team's Brune Sabionija with 50 seconds left, the gold was within their grasp. Goalkeeper Luko Vezilić came to another defense in the next attack, and Patrik Kundid scored the final 10-7. Ante Domazet led the strikers of the new world champions with three goals and was declared the best player of the final match. Patrik Kundid and Duje Srzić scored two goals each, and Petar Lončarić, Deni Sappe, and Andrija Bujas scored one goal each. Goalkeeper Luko Vezilić was unbeatable in the decisive moments. The best for the Spanish team were Adri Lopez with three goals and Johnny Shinske Marin with two goals. In the match for the bronze medal, the Serbian team defeated the US team 13-11 (2-0, 3-3, 2-3, 2-3; 4-2). Croatia now has two generations of world champions this year, as the under 16 team has joined their two-year-old colleagues who became world champions in Portugal just over a month ago. Croatia is currently second in the World Cup with 6 points, 2 wins, 0 draws, and 1 loss from 3 games. In the last 5 games, Croatia has won 3 and lost 2. The next match for the Croatian team is against the Czech Republic in away on 26 September 2026.