Croatia national under-17 football team
The Croatia national under-17 football team represents Croatia in international football matches for players aged 17 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 Mali vatreni ('Little Blazers'). So far, the Mali vatreni qualified for nine UEFA European Under-17 Championships. Croatia's greatest success in the tournament was third place in 2001. The team also finished fourth in 2005. Croatia also participated in three FIFA U-17 World Cups since its independence, in 2001, 2013 and 2015, being eliminated in quarter-finals in 2015, its biggest success so far in this tournament.
| Nickname(s) | Mali Vatreni (The Young Blazers) | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Croatian Football Federation (HNS) | ||
| Confederation | UEFA (Europe) | ||
| Head coach | Marijan Budimir | ||
| Most caps | Milan Badelj (28) | ||
| Top scorer | Nikola Kalinić (15) | ||
| FIFA code | CRO | ||
| |||
| First international | |||
| Croatia 1–0 Hungary (Donji Miholjac, Croatia; 26 April 1993) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
| Croatia 11–0 Andorra (Donji Tavankut, Serbia; 29 September 2004) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
| Croatia 0–5 Norway (Tallinn, Estonia; 25 October 2006) Croatia 0–5 England (Pula, Croatia; 28 September 2016) | |||
| European Championship | |||
| Appearances | 9 (first in 1996) | ||
| Best result | Third place, 2001 | ||
| World Cup | |||
| Appearances | 3 (first in 2001) | ||
| Best result | Quarter-finals, 2015 | ||
| Website | hns-cff.hr | ||