Is Luka Modric Retiring From Croatia?

Croatia’s 2026 World Cup ended the way a lot of people expected it might: in the Round of 32, against Portugal, with Luka Modric on the pitch at 40 years old and no announcement waiting for him afterward. More than a month later, that’s still true. He hasn’t said a word about what comes next — but somebody else has claimed to know the answer.

How did Modric’s World Cup end?

Croatia lost 2-1 to Portugal in the Round of 32. It was Modric’s fourth World Cup as Croatia’s talisman, a run that took him from the 2018 final to a third-place finish in 2022 and now a last-32 exit at 40 — the oldest outfield starter at the entire tournament. There was no tearful farewell speech, no confirmed final cap. Just a result, and silence on what it means for his international career.

Has Modric said anything about retiring?

Not publicly, no. Reporters and Croatian media have pressed the question repeatedly since the Portugal defeat, and Modric has offered nothing on the record — not a confirmation, not a denial, not even a timeline for when he might decide. For a player who has always been fairly direct about his career plans, the silence itself is notable.

So where did the retirement claim come from?

Italian reporting, not Modric himself. Journalist Andrea Ramazzotti reported that Modric has privately decided to end his Croatia career, while simultaneously agreeing to extend his contract at AC Milan for another season — continuing at club level while stepping away from the national team. It’s a specific, detailed claim, but it’s still just that: a report, sourced to one journalist, without confirmation from Modric or the Croatian federation (HNS).

Why does the club decision matter here?

Because it makes the reported version of events more plausible, even unconfirmed. A player quietly negotiating another season at his club while staying silent on his international future fits the pattern of a national-team exit being managed rather than announced. It doesn’t confirm anything — but it’s the kind of detail that lines up with a real decision more than it does with pure speculation.

When might this actually get resolved?

There’s no set date. Croatia’s next competitive fixtures, likely Nations League matches later in 2026, are the most natural point for an official answer to emerge — either through a squad list that includes Modric or one that doesn’t. Zlatko Dalić’s 26-man squad for 2026 already treated Modric’s World Cup as likely his last, shifting him out of a full 90-minute workload and into a managed role built around Kovačić as the deeper pivot — a sign the transition was already underway before a ball was kicked.

What’s actually certain, regardless of how this resolves?

The World Cup chapter is closed either way. Modric turns 41 on September 9, 2026, and nothing in his past comments suggests a fifth World Cup was ever on the table. What’s still genuinely open is whether Croatia gets one more competitive cycle out of him before the international career ends — a question that, as of early August 2026, has an unconfirmed Italian report on one side and total silence from the player himself on the other.