Soccer Football - World Cup - UEFA Qualifiers - Group L - Croatia v Faroe Islands - Stadion HNK Rijeka, Rijeka, Croatia - November 14, 2025 Faroe Islands' Geza David Turi celebrates scoring their first goal REUTERS/Antonio Bronic
RIJEKA, Croatia (Reuters) -Croatia completed a 3-1 comeback win over the Faroe Islands at home on Friday, securing their place at next year's World Cup in the U.S., Mexico and Canada.
With Croatia on 19 points, second‑placed Czech Republic can no longer catch them in Group L, as they sit on 13 points with one match left to play against Gibraltar on Monday.
For the visitors, ranked 127th by FIFA, the campaign ends with an impressive 12 points and a genuine fight for the top two places.
The Faroe Islands stunned the crowd after 16 minutes when Geza David Turi burst forward from midfield and hit a low strike that deflected off Luka Vuskovic to give the visitors the lead.
Seven minutes later, Croatia were level as the ball broke kindly for Josko Gvardiol in the box, who drilled a powerful strike into the bottom right corner.
Croatia went ahead in the 57th minute as an unmarked Petar Musa guided a low cross into the net. Nikola Vlasic settled the contest in the 70th minute with a composed finish.
CAPTAIN MODRIC'S TENTH MAJOR TOURNAMENT
AC Milan midfielder Luka Modric, 40, will lead Croatia at his tenth major international tournament and fifth World Cup in 2026. Croatia's long-time number 10 and former Real Madrid number 10 was key to their runner-up finish in 2018 and bronze in 2022.
The 2018 Ballon d'Or winner has featured in four World Cups (2006, 2014, 2018 and 2022) and five European Championships and, currently on 193 caps, is closing in on the 200-appearance mark at the 2026 tournament.
"The number sounds unreal, and I hope my health holds up and that I will be there. Ten is a special number for me and I hope we achieve a good result," Modric said.
"I am not obsessed with numbers, but it would be nice to reach that (200 caps). It is nice to hear and I am proud of everything I have achieved with the national team."
Modric said the qualification should not be taken for granted for a country of 3.8 million people, adding that their recent record shows how often they punch above their weight.
"The feeling is fantastic. It is no small thing to qualify for the World Cup. We often forget that because we achieved great results in the last two tournaments, but none of that is normal. We can be happy and proud of another big success," he added.
(Reporting by Tommy Lund in Gdansk; editing by Diane Craft and Christian Radnedge)
