Croatian jersey for the World Cup ended up at the bottom of The Athletic's ranking list
The jersey of the Croatian national football team for the FIFA World Cup 2026 found itself at the center of a new debate about football design after The Athletic placed it in last, 48th place in its ranking of the jerseys of all 48 national teams. It is an editorial ranking which, like most aesthetic choices in sport, does not represent an official assessment of the quality of the equipment, but rather a subjective evaluation of the appearance, originality and overall impression of the collections in which the national teams will compete at the biggest football tournament. Still, such lists regularly provoke strong reactions because national jerseys are not only sports equipment, but also symbols of identity, tradition and collective memory. Because of its recognizable red-and-white checks, the Croatian jersey has for decades belonged among the visually most recognizable jerseys in world football, so the last place on the ranking list attracted additional attention. According to the available information, The Athletic evaluated the overall visual impression of national-team kits ahead of the tournament that begins on June 11, 2026, in North America.
The assessment is especially interesting because the Croatian Football Federation and technical partner Nike presented the new jersey as a blend of football heritage and contemporary design. According to the official HNS announcement, the collection was inspired by the 1990 match between Croatia and the United States of America, one of the symbolically most important moments in Croatian football history. That match, played on the eve of Croatian independence, was highlighted in the HNS presentation as the starting point for the new visual identity, especially because the USA is one of the hosts of this year's World Cup. The checks remain in the foreground, but in a different, smaller and more refined version than in some earlier editions. It is precisely the difference between the official interpretation of the jersey and the cold assessment of a foreign sports media outlet that opened the question of where respect for tradition ends and where matters of taste begin.
HNS emphasized the connection with the historic match against the USA
The Croatian Football Federation announced on March 23, 2026, that the national team would wear a new Nike collection at the World Cup in Canada, the USA and Mexico. In that announcement, HNS stated that the new equipment combines Croatia's rich football tradition and modern technological innovations and that it directly draws inspiration from the match against the United States of America in 1990. According to HNS, the feelings of pride, togetherness and belonging are built into the design, and the symbolism is further emphasized by the fact that the tournament is also being played in the USA. HNS president Marijan Kustić said in an official statement that the jerseys have a strong connection with that historic match and once again highlight what makes the Croatian national team special. In this way, the Federation clearly made it known that it does not view the collection only as a new sporting edition, but also as a reminder of the beginnings of the modern national-team story.
The home jersey brings a red-and-white pattern in a smaller and neater version, with HNS stating that it is a reinterpretation of the original 1990 design, adapted to the requirements of contemporary football. The away jersey is made in dark blue with toned checks, preserving the recognizable motif but in a far more subtle edition. Inside the jersey there is the message "Family", which HNS describes as a symbol of the togetherness of the national team, supporters and the wider football community gathered around the national side. The official announcement also states that the jerseys were made with Nike's Aero-FIT technology, intended for better ventilation and regulation of body temperature in demanding conditions. HNS also announced that the new jerseys are available in the Federation's official online store and in Sport Vision shops, and for the first time, alongside the home and away kit, a goalkeeper jersey is also being offered.
Modrić's message and the emotional dimension of the new design
Special weight was given to the presentation by captain Luka Modrić as well, whose statement was conveyed by HNS. Modrić emphasized that the new jersey strongly reminds him of the equipment from 1990 and of the beginning of the story of the Croatian national football team. According to him, the design is inspiring because it recalls the players who laid the foundations for later successes, while at the same time retaining what is most important, the recognizable Croatian identity. Such a message fits into the wider communication of the Federation, which presents the new collection not as a radical turn, but as a return to the sources in a contemporary form. In that sense, reactions to The Athletic's ranking show how high expectations of the Croatian jersey are precisely because it is one of the rare national patterns that is globally recognizable even without additional explanation.
National-team jerseys are often evaluated on two levels: as items of clothing and as bearers of meaning. At the first level, cut, colors, arrangement of details, contrast and the impression of freshness are decisive; at the second level, history, memories of matches, supporters' emotions and the way in which visual identity is tied to sporting successes are crucial. This is precisely why the Croatian checks rarely pass unnoticed, regardless of whether the comments are positive or critical. When a foreign medium judges that this year's version is the weakest among all 48 national teams, that assessment is not perceived only as criticism of the design, but also as a comment on one of the best-known symbols of Croatian sport. However, it is important to emphasize that such rankings have no measurable sporting consequence and that the final impression often depends on how the jersey looks in a match, on the players and in the context of results.
The biggest World Cup so far and a stage for 48 visual identities
For the 2026 edition, FIFA introduced the biggest format change in the recent history of the World Cup. According to official FIFA data, the tournament is being played for the first time with 48 national teams, in 12 groups of four teams, with a total of 104 matches. The competition lasts from June 11 to July 19, 2026, and the hosts are Canada, Mexico and the United States of America. FIFA states that matches are being played in 16 host cities, which gives the tournament a much broader geographical and commercial framework than in previous editions. In such an environment, jerseys become an even more important part of the global presentation of national teams, because each collection appears before millions of viewers, in television broadcasts, on social networks and in the sale of supporter merchandise.
Croatia is in Group L together with England, Ghana and Panama, which FIFA confirmed in the group overview and match schedule. Croatia's first appearance is expected on June 17 against England in Dallas, followed by the match against Panama on June 23 in Toronto, while the duel with Ghana is scheduled for June 27 in Philadelphia. It is precisely those matches that will provide the real framework for the perception of the jersey, because the impression often changes when the equipment appears on the pitch, in a full kit and in the intensity of a competitive match. The history of football jerseys shows that designs which provoke divided opinions ahead of a tournament can become beloved if they become associated with major victories, striking photographs or emotionally powerful moments. The reverse is also true: aesthetically praised jerseys quickly fade if they are not accompanied by a sporting result or a recognizable narrative.
Technology, sustainability and the market for supporter jerseys
Ahead of the 2026 World Cup, Nike presented new national-team collections as a blend of national tradition and more advanced materials. According to Nike's announcement, the collections contain Aero-FIT technology developed for better cooling and greater breathability, which is especially important for a tournament played during the summer in the varied climatic conditions of North America. Nike states that the collections were designed to connect the history and cultural identity of individual federations with modern sporting requirements. In HNS's presentation, the use of advanced materials and recycling processes is additionally emphasized, placing the new equipment in the context of more sustainable production of sports clothing as well. On Nike's sales page for Croatian jerseys, it is stated that the new jerseys are made from recycled polyester, which is part of the manufacturer's broader effort to reduce the environmental impact of production.
From the market side, national-team jerseys have long ceased to be only equipment for players. They are a supporter product, a fashion item, a collector's article and part of the wider culture of major tournaments. That is why they are discussed in sporting, fashion and marketing circles, often with the same intensity as line-ups or the draw. In that context, the Croatian jersey has a special position because its checks are not fundamentally changed, but are reinterpreted from generation to generation through the size of the pattern, the ratio of colors, the placement of blue details and the look of away kits. These very limitations give designers clear recognizability, but at the same time make their work harder because every change can be received as too big or too small. The Athletic's ranking can therefore also be read as another episode in the constant debate about how much such a powerful visual sign may be changed.
A subjective list opened a wider debate about taste
Although last place sounds harsh, it is important to distinguish a subjective aesthetic assessment from an official or expert analysis of the jersey's functionality. The Athletic's ranking, according to available information, evaluates the appearance and impression of the jerseys, while HNS and Nike emphasize historical symbolism, technical characteristics and the connection with the identity of the national team in their announcements. These two perspectives do not necessarily have to coincide. A design may be important because of its symbolism, but at the same time it may not convince external observers who view it primarily as a contemporary sports product. On the other hand, a jersey that does not delight the wider public in initial reactions may over time gain a different status if it becomes associated with a successful national-team performance.
In the Croatian case, an additional layer is created by the fact that the jersey is never a neutral object. Since the emergence of the recognizable pattern at major competitions, the checks have become one of the most visible symbols of the national team and are often mentioned in international overviews of football aesthetics. Design solutions that in other national teams may be perceived as a usual seasonal change are viewed in Croatia through the question of continuity: whether enough identity is retained, whether the pattern has been changed too much, whether the away kit is sufficiently connected with the home one and how well the new details fit into tradition. That is why even a negative assessment by a foreign medium has a greater resonance than it would have for a national team whose jersey does not have such a clearly recognizable visual code. The debate about this jersey therefore also speaks of the special place that Croatian football identity has in the global culture of national-team equipment.
The last major Nike collection before a new era of equipment
According to available media reports and specialized portals for football jerseys, the Croatian national team will enter a new era of equipment after the 2026 World Cup, and the partnership with Nike is expected to be replaced by Adidas. The specialized portal Footy Headlines reported that the change is expected after the tournament and that it would end the long-standing partnership between Croatia and Nike, which began in 2000. In its announcement about the current collection, HNS highlights Nike as the technical partner for the jerseys in which Croatia will compete at this year's World Cup. For that reason, the current kit can also be seen as the symbolic end of a long period of visual shaping of the national team under the same manufacturer. In that context, The Athletic's ranking gains additional interest because the criticism concerns a collection that could be Nike's last major World Cup version for Croatia.
A change of equipment supplier usually brings new expectations, but also caution, especially when it concerns a national team with such a recognizable pattern. Future designs will have to answer the same question that is also being posed to the current jersey: how to preserve the checks as the foundation of identity while offering enough freshness for a new generation of players and supporters. The current debate over the last place on the ranking list shows that this task is not simple. The Croatian jersey must be classic enough to remain true to itself, but new enough not to look like a repetition of what has already been seen. It is precisely in that narrow space between tradition and innovation that both the greatest praise and the fiercest criticism arise.
The final judgment will be given by the tournament, the players and the supporters
The Athletic's ranking will remain recorded as one of the more interesting aesthetic comments ahead of the World Cup, but it will not determine the real value of the jersey in the eyes of those who will connect it with matches and results. HNS officially presented the collection as a design with a strong historical message, Nike emphasized the technological and material side of the new collections, and FIFA's schedule ensures that Croatia will very quickly get the opportunity to show the new jersey on the biggest stage. In the first match, against England on June 17 in Dallas, the red-and-white or away elements will not be only a subject of fashion commentary, but part of the national team's competitive performance. Then the debate from internet rankings will move to the pitch, where the sporting context often changes the perception of design. If the jersey becomes associated with good results, last place on one list could remain merely a footnote in the story of another major tournament.
For now, the only thing certain is that the new Croatian jersey has once again attracted attention, which almost always happens with such a visual identity. Criticism from foreign media can spark debate, but it does not have to decide how the jersey will be remembered in the long term. The history of national-team football is full of examples in which jerseys were initially received with reservation at the beginning of tournaments and later became sought-after and valued because of the matches played in them. At the 2026 World Cup, Croatia will wear a design that refers to the year 1990, to the beginnings of the modern national team and to the recognizable checks. Whether that blend of heritage and contemporary approach will, in the eyes of supporters, outweigh The Athletic's negative assessment will be shown by the matches that follow.
Sources:
- Croatian Football Federation – official presentation of the new jerseys of the Croatian national team for the FIFA World Cup 2026. (link)
- FIFA – official overview of the format, dates and schedule of the FIFA World Cup 2026. (link)
- FIFA – official match schedule and information about Group L, including Croatia's matches against England, Panama and Ghana. (link)
- Nike – official announcement about the national-team collections for 2026 and Aero-FIT technology. (link)
- Nike – sales page for the Croatian national-team collection with information about recycled polyester and new jerseys. (link)
- Footy Headlines – specialized portal for football jerseys, information about Croatia's 2026 equipment and the announced change of technical partner after the World Cup. (link)