Croatia

Croatia has reached two of the last three World Cup finals (2018, 2022) and finished third in 2022. For a nation of just 3.8 million people, their consistency at the highest level is historically unprecedented.

Luka Modrić won the 2018 Ballon d'Or, breaking the Messi-Ronaldo duopoly. At 40, the 2026 World Cup is expected to be his farewell to international football.

Croatia only became an independent nation in 1991. Just seven years later, they finished third at the 1998 World Cup in France — one of the fastest rises in football history.