{"id":643742,"date":"2026-06-17T15:32:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-17T15:32:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/643742\/"},"modified":"2026-06-17T15:32:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-17T15:32:14","slug":"england-vs-croatia-prediction-world-cup-2026-match-preview","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/643742\/","title":{"rendered":"England vs Croatia Prediction: World Cup 2026 Match Preview"},"content":{"rendered":"

We look ahead to Wednesday\u2019s Group L FIFA World Cup<\/a> clash with our England vs Croatia prediction and preview. Can the Three Lions kick-start their campaign with a win?<\/p>\n

England vs Croatia: The Key Insights<\/p>\n

The Opta supercomputer expects England to start their 2026 World Cup campaign strongly, with a win probability of 55.9% to Croatia\u2019s 20.8%.<\/p>\n

This will be the second meeting between England and Croatia in the World Cup, following the 2018 semi-final, where Croatia triumphed 2-1 after extra time.<\/p>\n

England have lost only one of their last eight opening matches at the World Cup (W4 D3) \u2013 a 2-1 defeat to Italy in 2014.<\/p>\n

England<\/a>\u00a0will look\u00a0to\u00a0make a rip-roaring start to their World Cup campaign when they face Croatia<\/a> in their Group L opener at Dallas Stadium on Wednesday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Three Lions have been one of the form teams leading up to the tournament and are\u00a0among the\u00a0favourites to\u00a0reach\u00a0the semi-finals, with the Opta supercomputer<\/a> giving them a\u00a029.1%\u00a0chance.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Wednesday\u2019s match will mark England\u2019s 17th World Cup appearance and their eighth in succession \u2013 their longest participation streak since\u00a0missing out in 1994 (also in the USA).<\/p>\n

Thomas Tuchel\u2019s side were one of only two\u00a0UEFA nations, alongside\u00a0Norway, to win\u00a0all eight of their qualifying matches. They were also the only side to come through qualifying without conceding a goal.<\/p>\n

While impressive, Tuchel now faces the big challenge\u00a0of translating that form onto the biggest stage, something England have often found difficult.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Since\u00a0lifting the trophy\u00a0in 1966, the Three Lions\u2019 record in the tournament has\u00a0been\u00a0nothing to write home about.\u00a0They have\u00a0progressed past the\u00a0quarter-finals\u00a0only twice, securing fourth place finishes in both 1990 and 2018.\u00a0<\/p>\n

What may encourage England, however, is their strong record in\u00a0World Cup\u00a0openers. They have lost just one of their last eight\u00a0curtain-raisers\u00a0(W3 D4) \u2013 a 2-1 defeat to Italy in 2014.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Croatia, meanwhile, have long since shed their \u201cunderdog\u201d label and arrive at their seventh World Cup as one of international football\u2019s most consistent tournament performers.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The\u00a0Vatreni\u2019s\u00a0record\u00a0may suggest that they tend to blow hot and cold, but under the leadership of the age-defying Luka Modric<\/a>, they\u00a0remain\u00a0a genuine threat.<\/p>\n

Across\u00a0their last six World Cups, they have\u00a0been eliminated in the group stage on three\u00a0occasions but\u00a0have also\u00a0secured podium finishes on the other three.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Indeed, Croatia are one of only two nations, alongside France, to have reached the semi-finals at each of the last two World Cups.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While their chances of\u00a0making\u00a0the final four this time around are slim (8.9%), they still arrive in the USA\u00a0in some good form.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Zlatko Dalic\u2019s side won seven of their eight qualifying matches\u00a0and remained unbeaten throughout the campaign,\u00a0only dropping points in a 0-0 draw against Czechia in Prague.\u00a0<\/p>\n

They are also unbeaten in World Cup group-stage matches across the last two tournaments (W4 D2), conceding only two goals during that run.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Opening matches have not always been kind to Croatia, though. They have won only one of their last five World Cup openers (D1 L3)\u00a0\u2013\u00a0a 2-0 victory over Nigeria in 2018.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Opta supercomputer gives Croatia a 77.2% chance of progressing from Group L, second only to England\u2019s 95.6%.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While obviously strong across\u00a0the pitch, the scale of England\u2019s success this summer could\u00a0depend on Harry Kane<\/a>\u2018s performance. Only Kylian Mbapp\u00e9 (12) has scored more goals than Kane\u2019s eight\u00a0across the last two editions of the World Cup.<\/p>\n

\"Harry<\/p>\n

The England skipper is expected to start against Croatia in what will be his 30th\u00a0match at a major international tournament,\u00a0more than any other England player.<\/p>\n

Croatia, meanwhile,\u00a0will again look to Ivan Perisic<\/a> for inspiration.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The veteran winger has been directly involved in more goals than any Croatian player in major tournament history (10 goals, eight assists). He is also one of just three players to have both scored and\u00a0assisted\u00a0at each of the last three World Cups, alongside Lionel Messi and Neymar.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Ivan<\/p>\n

England vs Croatia Head-to-Head<\/p>\n

The last World Cup meeting between England and Croatia was a clash for the ages, with\u00a0Dalic\u2019s\u00a0side coming from behind to secure a 2-1 extra-time victory in the semi-final in 2018.<\/p>\n

Kieran\u00a0Trippier\u00a0gave England an early lead but goals from Perisic and Mario Mandzukic eventually sent Croatia through to their first World Cup final.<\/p>\n

\"Croatia<\/p>\n

Wednesday\u2019s clash will\u00a0be\u00a0the fourth\u00a0between England and Croatia at a major tournament\u00a0in the 21st\u00a0century.\u00a0\u00a0They have so far faced off once at the World Cup (Croatia\u00a0won in 2018)\u00a0and twice at the Euros\u00a0(both England wins).<\/p>\n

England vs Croatia Prediction<\/p>\n

England have been tagged as favourites ahead of this Group L opener according to the Opta supercomputer, with the Three Lions winning in 55.9% of the\u00a010,000 pre-match simulations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Croatia\u00a0chances of victory were rated at just 20.8%,\u00a0while a draw accounted\u00a0for the remaining 23.3% of\u00a0the\u00a0simulations.<\/p>\n

\"England<\/p>\n

England vs Croatia Squads<\/p>\n

England: Jordan Pickford, Dean Henderson, James Trafford, Ezri Konsa, Nico O\u2019Reilly, John Stones, Marc Gu\u00e9hi, Tino Livramento, Dan Burn, Reece James, Djed Spence, Jarell Quansah, Declan Rice, Elliot Anderson, Jude Bellingham, Jordan Henderson, Kobbie Mainoo, Morgan Rogers, Eberechi Eze, Bukayo Saka, Harry Kane, Marcus Rashford, Anthony Gordon, Ollie Watkins, Noni Madueke, Ivan Toney.<\/p>\n

Croatia: Dominik Livakovic, Ivor Pandur, Dominik Kotarski, Josip Stanisic, Marin Pongracic, Josko Gvardiol, Duje Caleta-Car, Josip Sutalo, Luka Vuskovic, Martin Erlic, Nikola Moro, Mateo Kovacic, Luka Modric, Nikola Vlasic, Mario Pasalic, Martin Baturina, Petar Sucic, Kristijan Jakic, Toni Fruk, Luka Sucic, Andrej Kramaric, Ante Budimir, Ivan Perisic, Igor Matanovic, Marco Pasalic, Petar Musa.<\/p>\n

England vs Croatia Predicted Lineups<\/p>\n

\"England<\/p>\n

\"Croatia<\/p>\n

\"FIFA<\/a><\/p>\n

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