Marcelo Brozović retires for Croatia

Marcelo Brozović retires

Croatia midfielder Marcelo Brozović has officially announced the end of his international career on Wednesday.

Brozović, who made his debut for Croatia back in 2014, retires after earning 99 caps for his country.  He played at the 2014, 2018 and 2022 FIFA World Cups, as well as the 2016, 2020 and 2024 EUROS. 

The 31-year-old has a silver medal from the 2018 FIFA World Cup and a bronze medal from the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

In his farewell letter published by the Croatian Football Federation, which is shared in full below, he expresses his gratitude to the managers, teammates, and fans.

You all know me well enough to know that I’m not a man of many words, so for this farewell letter, a single number would actually suffice.

99.
That’s the number of times I had the honour of playing for the Croatian national football team, and with that number, I will end my international career.

I have always given 100% of my effort, energy, strength, and passion for Croatia. This is the standard set by many great players before me, a standard that we all in this unforgettable generation have strived for, and a standard that everyone who follows must aspire to.

I feel that I have experienced and achieved everything I could have ever wished for with Croatia, and it is time for new players to give their 100%, as that is the only level that is good enough when representing Croatia.

99 matches.
My competitive debut against Brazil in the opening match of the World Cup in Brazil. A silver medal in Russia. A bronze medal in Qatar. Silver in Rotterdam. Homecomings after world medals. Many sweet, great, and dramatic victories, but also some painful defeats.

Countless sliding tackles and even more kilometres run. These are the most striking, cherished, and special memories of my football life, and I am endlessly grateful to have had the privilege of being part of this team.

It is impossible in a letter like this to thank everyone individually, as in football, you need to be lucky enough to be surrounded by many quality people to succeed, from coaches to teammates to doctors, physios, kitmen, and everyone else.

And in the Croatian national team, they are – the best of the best.

It has been a pleasure to work with all the managers, from Niko Kovač, who first gave me the opportunity, through Ante Čačić, with whom we played excellent football in France, to Zlatko Dalić, with whom we achieved unprecedented and extraordinary successes.

Thank you to them and all the staff members, as well as the team at the Croatian Football Federation, because together, they help create that winning, pleasant, and family atmosphere in the team.

A huge thank you goes to my family and closest people because they have always been my most important support. I am happy that I was able to share those greatest moments in the history of Croatian football with them, as well as with the fans who lived, celebrated, and grieved with us—thank you for your support, especially when times were tough.

For many reasons, it is difficult to say goodbye to the national team, but for one reason, I have struggled for so long.

It is hard to say goodbye to the team.

It is hard to say goodbye to Luka and Kova, with whom I have been through so much, with whom I had an almost instinctive understanding on the pitch, and with whom it was an incredible pleasure to play. And to everyone else, both younger and older, because we knew how to give 100% on the pitch, and how to have a laugh off it.

I know I will miss all of that: every meal, the preparation for training, the tension before a match, the pride when our national anthem is played, the emotion when we celebrate great victories with the fans, and that ordinary Monday when we gather, see each other for the first time in a month or two, hug and pick up right where we left off.

Marcelo Brozović (Photo credit: Антон Зайцев/CC BY-SA 3.0)

But the journey must go on, and those of us who are leaving remain the biggest fans. Croatia has, and will continue to have, a great team, with the older players leading as they have so far, and the younger ones, hungry, talented, and eager to continue the string of great successes.

Ninety-nine.
Some might ask, “Who would be crazy enough to retire with 99 caps?”

It’s more than I could have ever hoped for, and it has been better and more successful than I could have ever dreamed. And so, those ninety-nine are just, well, epic!

Love,
Broz