Croatia opened their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign with a resounding 7–0 win over Gibraltar, marking their most decisive away victory in an official match and tying their biggest win ever — a result last achieved against Andorra in 2006 during the Euro 2008 qualifiers.
Mario Pašalić opened the scoring in the 28th minute with a powerful header from an Ivan Perišić cross. Just two minutes later, the duo linked up again. Perišić delivered a corner, Pašalić struck from close range, and Ante Budimir redirected the ball into the net from point-blank to make it 2–0.
The second half belonged to Franjo Ivanović, who scored his first two goals for the national team just three minutes apart (in the 60th and 63rd minutes), with both goals assisted by Perišić.
Perišić then got on the scoresheet himself in the 73rd minute, smashing home a volley off a cross from Marco Pašalić to make it 5–0.
Andrej Kramarić added to the result with a goal in the 77th minute, finishing a sharp pass from Lovro Majer. Just three minutes later, Ivanović assisted Kramarić’s second goal of the night, sealing a dominant 7–0 final score.
With momentum on their side and the offense firing on all cylinders, Croatia now sets its sights on a high-stakes showdown with group leaders Czechia, who also boast a perfect record in the qualifiers. The next match is on Monday in Osijek.
