Croatia national football team in the context of "2018 FIFA World Cup final"

The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded the hosting rights in late 2010. It was the eleventh time the championships had been held in Europe and the first time they were held in Eastern Europe, also featuring one or two venues, depending on definition, located across the boundary with Asia. At an estimated cost of over $14.2 billion, it was the most expensive World Cup ever held until it was surpassed by the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

The tournament phase involved 32 teams, of which 31 came through qualifying competitions, while the host nation Russia qualified automatically. Of the 32, 20 had also appeared in the 2014 event, while Iceland and Panama each made their debut at the World Cup. 64 matches were played in 12 venues across 11 cities. Germany, the defending champions, were eliminated in the group stage for the first time since 1938. Host nation Russia was eliminated in the quarter-finals. In the final, France played Croatia on 15 July at Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow. France won the match 4–2, claiming their second World Cup and becoming the fourth consecutive title won by a European team, after Italy in 2006, Spain in 2010, and Germany in 2014 - a winning streak for the teams representing the same continent that extended the record broken four years earlier.

The Iceland national football team (Icelandic: Íslenska karlalandsliðið í knattspyrnu) represents Iceland in men's international football. The team is controlled by the Football Association of Iceland, and have been a FIFA member since 1947 and a UEFA member since 1957. The team's nickname is Strákarnir okkar, which means Our Boys in Icelandic.

The team enjoyed success in the second half of the 2010s. In the qualifying rounds for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Iceland reached the playoffs before losing to Croatia. Iceland reached its first major tournament, UEFA Euro 2016, after a qualification campaign which included home and away wins over the Netherlands. After reaching the knockout stages of Euro 2016, Iceland defeated England in the round of 16, advancing to the quarter-finals, where they lost to host nation France 5–2. The team qualified for the 2018 tournament on 9 October 2017, becoming the smallest nation by population to clinch a FIFA World Cup spot. They drew with Argentina in their opening match, but went out in the group stage.

Croatian nationalism is the set of political, economic, civic, cultural, and ethnic ideologies that promotes the interests and influences within Croatia, the Croat people, Croatian citizens and the Croatian diaspora. It indicates the aspects that characterize and distinguish Croatian society as an autonomous community. The national identity and self-determination of Croatia has seen significant dynamism throughout its history. The cultural and ethnic unity of Croats has been a key component of nationalism since the 19th century. Roman Catholicism and the Illyrian movement influenced early-stage nationalist ideas. The claim and promise of historic statehood for Croats has informed many varieties of modern Croatian nationalism. This created the concept of Greater Croatia, the belief in the equivalence between the territorial scope of the Croatian people and that of the Croatian state. This regional sphere of influence spreads Croatian nationalism across Southeast Europe.

Following the independence of Croatia in 1991, modern Croatian society has been dominated by ethnic nationalism and historical revisionism. Its deepening integration within Europe and the broader Western world, has led to increased legal and rational concepts of nationalism such as the shared Croatian language, cultural traditions, national values, and citizenship. Croatian nationalism exists across the ideological spectrum – from the left-wing to the right-wing – of the country's political establishment. Croatia has strong ultranationalist (or hyper-nationalist) currents that advocate for extreme interpretations of Croatian hegemony, which has at times led to ethnic tension and political violence. Many national symbols and cultural exports define Croatian nationalism, including its national flag, anthem, soccer team, tourism sector, and cuisine, among others.

The 2022 FIFA World Cup final was the final match of the 2022 FIFA World Cup, the 22nd edition of FIFA's competition for men's national football teams. The match was played at Lusail Stadium in Lusail, Qatar, on 18 December 2022, the Qatari National Day, and was contested by Argentina and defending champions France. With a record 1.5 billion people watching on television, the final became one of the most widely watched televised sporting events in history.

The tournament comprised hosts Qatar and 31 other teams who emerged victorious from the qualification phase, organised by the six FIFA confederations. The 32 teams competed in a group stage, from which 16 teams qualified for the knockout stage. En route to the final, Argentina finished first in Group C, first losing to Saudi Arabia 2–1, then defeating both Mexico and Poland 2–0. They then beat Australia 2–1 in the round of 16, the Netherlands in the quarter-final through a penalty shoot-out after it ended 2–2 in extra time, and Croatia in the semi-final 3–0. France finished first in Group D with two wins and one loss (4–1 win over Australia, 2–1 win over Denmark, and a 1–0 loss to Tunisia), defeating Poland 3–1 in the round of 16, England 2–1 in the quarter-final, and Morocco 2–0 in the semi-final. The final took place in front of 88,966 spectators and was refereed by Szymon Marciniak.

The UEFA Euro 1996 final was the final match of UEFA Euro 1996, the tenth European Championship, UEFA's top football competition for national teams. The match was played at Wembley Stadium in London, England, on 30 June 1996, and was contested between the Czech Republic and Germany.

En route to the final, both sides had been drawn in Group C, alongside Italy and Russia; Germany would defeat the Czech Republic 2–0 in their opening game and then go on to win the group, with the Czech Republic finishing second. Germany then defeated Croatia in the quarter-finals, before progressing to the final following a penalty shoot-out victory over hosts England in the semi-finals. Meanwhile, the Czech Republic beat Portugal in the quarter-finals, before overcoming France in the semi-finals, also via a penalty shoot-out.

The 1998 FIFA World Cup final was the final match of the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the 16th edition of the quadrennial football competition organised by FIFA for the men's national teams of its member associations. The match was played at the Stade de France in Paris, France, on 12 July 1998, and was contested by Brazil and France. The tournament featured France as the hosts, Brazil as the winners of the previous World Cup and 30 other teams who emerged from the qualification tournaments organised by the six FIFA confederations. The 32 teams competed in a group stage, from which 16 teams qualified for the knockout stage. En route to the final, Brazil finished first in Group A, with two wins and one defeat, after which they beat Chile in the round of 16, Denmark in the quarter-finals and the Netherlands in a penalty shoot-out in the semi-finals. France finished top of Group C with three wins, before defeating Paraguay in the round of 16, Italy in the quarter-final, and Croatia in the semi-final. The final took place in front of 75,000 supporters, with an estimated 1.3 billion watching on television, and was refereed by Said Belqola from Morocco.

Before the match, speculation surrounded the fitness of striker Ronaldo, who was initially left out of Brazil's starting line-up, only to be restored to the team before kick-off. France took the lead shortly before the half-hour mark, when Zinedine Zidane outjumped Leonardo to connect with a header from an in-swinging corner from the right taken by Emmanuel Petit. Zidane scored again, with another header from a corner, shortly before half-time to give France a 2–0 lead. Petit then added a third goal in second-half injury time, striking the ball low into the net following a pass by Patrick Vieira, to complete a 3–0 win for France.

The knockout stage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup was the second and final stage of the competition, following the group stage. It began on 30 June with the round of 16 and ended on 15 July with the final match, held at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow. The top two teams from each group (16 in total) advanced to the knockout stage to compete in a single-elimination style tournament. A third place play-off was also played between the two losing teams of the semi-finals.

France won the final 4–2 against Croatia for their second title, while Belgium won the third place play-off 2–0 over England.

Group D of the 2018 FIFA World Cup took place from 16 to 26 June 2018. The group consisted of Argentina, Iceland, Croatia, and Nigeria. The top two teams, Croatia and Argentina, advanced to the round of 16.