The final of the 2026 Croatian League will be a replay of this season’s Croatian Cup gold-medal match. Mladost and Jadran Split, the top two teams in the regular season, reached the final after two games each in the semifinal series.
Mladost , the Croatian Cup winner, secured its place in the final with two wins over Jug. The Zagreb-based side beat its archrival in the second match in Dubrovnik more easily than expected, winning 19:10. To remind, only two goals separated the rivals in Game 1 in Zagreb (11:9).
Mladost started strongly and quickly built a 3:0. The visitors extended their advantage to 5:1. Jug’s Filip Krzic was excluded for a violent foul early in the second period. Mladost capitalized on the resulting four-minute man advantage, stretching the lead from 5:2 to 7:3. After 24 minutes, Mladost had a 13:6 lead, so the fourth quarter was a formality. Led by a six-goal performance from Ivan Nagaev, five goals from Andrija Basic, and backed by 15 saves from Cubranic, Mladost outplayed the hosts, whose best scorer was Marko Zuvela (three goals).
Jadran eliminated Primorje. Both games of this semifinal pair took place this week, because Jadran played in the 1st leg of the Euro Cup final last Saturday.
Jadran beat Primorje 16:12 in the first game played in the outdoor pool in Split. The reigning champion led 15:7 after three quarters. Then it allowed Primorje to reduce the gap. Jerko Marinic Kragic and Loren Fatovic scored half of Jadran’s goals (each contributed four goals to the victory), but the best scorer was Primorje’s Tin Brubnjak (5 goals). The performance of Jadran’s goalkeeper, Marko Bijac, has to be mentioned. The captain of the Croatian national team posted 18 saves.
Primorje opened the game against Jadran in Rijeka quite well. Deep into the first quarter, the hosts led 4:2. Then Jadran took control. The Split-based side scored six straight goals, turning a 2:4 deficit into an 8:4 lead. At halftime, the visitors were five steps ahead of Primorje (11:6). Jadran’s defense faltered in the second half, but the attack remained strong, leading the Split-based team to a 21:16 victory. Zvonimir Butic and Mislav Curkovic scored four goals each for Jadran; Matkovic and Marinic Kragic contributed three. But the best scorer was Primorje’s Ivan Vukojevic, with seven goals.
2026 Croatian League, playoffs
Semifinals (best of three)
Postponed Game 1
Jadran – Primorje EB 16:12 (3:2, 6:3, 6:2, 1:5)
Game 2
Jug AO – Mladost 10:19 (1:5, 2:3, 3:5, 4:6) – the score in the series 0:2
Primorje – Jadran 16:21 (4:4, 2:7, 4:3, 6:7) – the score in the series 0:2
5th-8th place playoffs (best of two), Game 2
Mornar and Zadar advanced to the 5th-place game, thus securing their spots in the 2026/27 Conference Cup. Zadar qualified for a European cup for the first time in history.
Mornar – Solaris 14:11 (3:2, 3:4, 2:2, 6:3) – first leg 8:12
Medvescak – Zadar 15:12 (2:5, 3:4, 3:2, 7:2) – first leg 14:21
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