Why is Croatia vs. England being held behind closed doors?

Croatia vs. England will be played behind closed doors when the two sides meet in the UEFA Nations League in October.

The Three Lions are due to travel to Rijeka on Saturday, October 3, with kick-off scheduled for 6pm local time.

However, England fans will not be able to attend the fixture at HNK Rijeka Stadium after Croatia were handed a UEFA disciplinary sanction.

Here, FootballGroundGuide explains why Croatia vs. England is being played behind closed doors.

Why can't fans attend Croatia vs. England?

Croatia vs. England is being played behind closed doors because the Croatian Football Federation (HNS) was sanctioned by UEFA following incidents of crowd trouble during their Nations League quarter-final matches against France in March 2025.

UEFA's disciplinary action included a one-match home stadium ban and a separate one-match ban on Croatian away supporters, with the England game set to be played without any fans in attendance as it is Croatia's next home match in a UEFA competition.

Why have Croatia been sanctioned?

Croatia played France in the Nations League quarter-finals in March 2025, with the first leg taking place in Split and the return leg taking place in Paris.

Following the two matches, UEFA opened disciplinary proceedings concerning racism and discrimination and handed Croatia the two crowd-related bans.

The HNS were also fined a total of €93,000 and ordered to cover the cost of repairing damage caused to the Stade de France by Croatia fans.

Is this the first time England have played Croatia behind closed doors?

England previously played Croatia behind closed doors at the HNK Rijeka Stadium during the 2018 UEFA Nations League, with that game ending 0-0.

Croatia were serving another UEFA stadium punishment at the time after a swastika was marked onto the pitch ahead of their Euro 2016 qualifying game against Italy.

October's meeting will therefore be the second time England have travelled to Rijeka for a Nations League fixture with no fans in the stadium.

What happens with the return fixture?

England will get the chance to host Croatia later in the Nations League campaign, with the return fixture scheduled for November 12 at Wembley.

Unlike the Rijeka meeting, that match is not affected by UEFA sanctions and supporters will have the opportunity to watch the England face Croatia in the stadium.