The Croatian national team revived their hopes of advancing to the second round of the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals, claiming their first 3 points with a precious and hard-fought 1-0 victory over Panama, the sole goal scored by substitute Ante Budimir (54'), in a match played at Toronto Stadium in Canada in the second round of Group 12 fixtures.
Both sides entered the pitch under a win-or-bust mandate to keep their qualification hopes alive after stumbling in the opening round — Croatia had suffered a 2-4 defeat to England, while Panama fell to Ghana by a single goal. That pressure produced an open, attacking start devoid of the usual defensive caution, with Croatia going forward first through their veteran captain Luka Modrić, who rose to meet a cross and directed a header over the Panamanian crossbar.
Panama responded with a counterattack that produced a powerful header from José Rodríguez, but Croatian goalkeeper Dominik Livaković made a brilliant save. The match remained evenly balanced in terms of possession and attacking exchanges, and in the final minute of the first half Croatia nearly snatched the lead through a sudden and powerful strike from Martín Baturina, but the Panamanian goalkeeper reacted quickly to push the ball away for a corner that came to nothing, leaving the first half goalless.
At the start of the second half, Croatia coach Zlatko Dalić introduced two attacking options to sharpen his team's offensive edge, bringing on Ante Budimir and Andrej Kramarić as substitutes for Petar Musa and defender Joško Gvardiol. The changes quickly paid dividends as substitute Budimir seized on a cross from Josip Stanišić and converted it directly into the Panamanian net to give Croatia the lead.
Panama launched a rapid attack that ended in a corner, but it gave way to a swift Croatian counter led by captain Luka Modrić, who played a clever ball that put Mario Pašalić through on goal one-on-one with the goalkeeper, only for him to shoot straight at the keeper, wasting a clear chance to double Croatia's advantage.
Panama's players pushed forward in search of an equaliser, and Dominik Livaković excelled with two successive saves to spare his team what appeared to be an imminent leveller. Despite Panama's efforts and fight to draw level, Croatia held on to their lead and went on to claim a 1-0 victory.