FIFA 2026
Growing up as a “Baby Boomer” I can assure you that soccer was, shall I put it politely, “not well known and certainly not popular.” For me, it was baseball, baseball and yet more baseball.
Having graduated from Boomer to parent of three young children in the 1990’s, baseball still held first place for me but as our kids were old enough for sports it became, for them, baseball, softball and soccer. Not knowing anything about the sport I never made eye contact with those asking for coaching volunteers but I was, ironically, hood-winked into occasionally refereeing! My consistent instruction s to players during a match was, “Keep playing, keep playing….” I thought this would convince parents and the players that I was “on top of the action.” I am sure that the parents and players saw right through my ruse.
Retiring from my “referee” days, my awareness of soccer, er, sorry, FOOTBALL came into my life when I became the Honorary Consul for Croatia for Texas in 2012. It did not take long to begin admiring the incredible athleticism of both the players and the referees at the top level in the world, the FIFA World Cups.
My small country of Croatia was becoming a powerhouse in the sport, and watch parties became the norm along with team gear, scarves, hats, et al. When the World Cup was played in Brazil in 2014 Croatia was eliminated in Group round. Four years later in Russia in 2018 Croatia became the first team in World Cup history to reach the finals after playing three consecutive knockout matches that went to extra time, winning two of them on penalties. Alas, the team fell to France 4-2 but still won the Silver Medal for second place in the World Cup.
This is the 2018 team in Russia, with Russian President Vladimir Putin with his arm around Croatian superstar, Luka Modrić, center, along with the then-President of Croatia Kolinda Grabar-Kitarović, left.
Four years later, 2022 in Qatar, Croatia again excelled, winning the Group stage with 1 win against Canada and draws against Morocco and Belgium, advancing to the Round of 16. Next Croatia prevailed over Japan with a 1-1 draw, advancing on penalties (3-1) to the Quarter-final, defeating Brazil with another 1-1 draw amd again advancing on penalties (4-1). This brought Croatia to the Semi-final round in which they lost to Argentina 3-0. Croatia then proceeded to defeat Morocco, 2-1, to secure the third place Bronze.
2026 World Cup
Now, as everyone knows, the World Cup comes to North America with matches in Canada, Mexico and the United States. Croatia is in Group L with England, Ghana and Panama. I was honored to be named to the official Croatian Delegation to the opening match of Group L, England v Croatia, on Wednesday, 17 June, 2026, played in Arlington at the AT&T Stadium. The Delegation was led by the Croatian Minister of Justice, Damir Habijan, the Croatian Ambassador to the US, Pjer Šimunović and the Consul General from Los Angeles, Renee Pea, as the LA consulate has jurisdiction over Texas.
The vaunted Croatian squad is admittedly getting older and England was favored.
The Croatian team is led by legendary Luka Modrić – At age 40, he remains Croatia’s captain and emotional leader. Coach Zlatko Dalić included him in the World Cup squad, and he is still the player who dictates Croatia’s tempo and creativity.
England enters the 2026 FIFA World Cup as one of the tournament favorites under new manager Thomas Tuchel. The squad blends experienced veterans with some of the world’s best young talent.
Now to what I experienced as part of the delegation. Unfortunately, some readers might think this comes off as bragging. Believe me, I am not bragging, just commenting on how lucky I was to be included in the Croatian delegation and how it enables me to describe this one-in-a-lifetime experience.
Our seats were in the VVIP suite. That is NOT a typo. It stands for Very Very Important People. This is the suite for heads of state, national delegations and FIFA executives. What can I say – the suite is at a surprisingly lower levels than most suites as this photo will illustrate –
The action was fabulous. England scored first on a penalty kick by Kane. This was his second penalty kick since the first one was blocked by the Croatian goal keeper however the officials said that the keeper had left the box early. A very important mistake. Croatia then tied the match but, again, Harry Kane had the answer as he scored his second goal on a header from a corner-kick. Croatia then again responded and the score at half time was 2-2. England would eventually score two more goals in the second half and win 4-2.
As of this writing there were still two more matches for Croatia in Group L play, first against Panama and then against Ghana. With additional teams in the tournament this year the first two teams in each group advance to the knock-out rounds as well as eight others third place teams.
Joining us in the VVIP suite was my good friend and colleague, Richard Shackleton, Consul General for the UK, and the UK Ambassador to the United States, Sir Christian Turner.
In conclusion, it was a sensational event, great food and drink, great people watching and the best seat in the world. It also gave me yet another opportunity to plug my favorite local brewery and beer, Masinghorn by Baileson’s going to the World Cup!
