The Croatian U21 team continues its qualification for the 2027 European Championship today in Varaždin against Hungary. The match begins at 17:00, with Ivica Olić's side entering the final three rounds as the group leaders and still unbeaten in Group H.
Croatia enters the final three rounds as the top team in Group H with 13 points from five matches. Turkey has 11 points from six matches, Ukraine 8 points from six matches, Hungary 3 points from five matches, and Lithuania 2 points from six matches. In their previous encounter, Croatia won 2-0.
A victory against Hungary would bring Croatia to 16 points. If Turkey does not defeat Ukraine on the same day, Croatia would mathematically secure first place and direct qualification to the European Championship on the day. If both Croatia and Turkey win, the team led by Olić would need two more points from away matches against Ukraine and Lithuania to secure the top spot.
Hungary needs a victory to remain in the race for one of the top two places. Following today's match, Croatia has away games against Ukraine and Lithuania ahead.
The qualifiers are played across nine groups with five or six teams each. The winners of all nine groups and the best runner-up advance directly to the European Championship. The remaining eight runners-up play in a two-legged tie for the remaining four spots. Albania and Serbia, as hosts, have already secured their places.
At the final tournament, held from 16 June to 3 July 2027, a total of 16 teams will compete. When comparing the runners-up in groups, results against the bottom-placed team are discarded. The match can be watched live on the MAX Sport 1 channel.
