There are trips you plan for months, and there are trips you book because you simply have to be there. This was the second kind. Croatia was playing Panama in Toronto, and for a Croatian-American who has spent a lifetime watching this team from a couch an ocean away, I wasn’t going to miss it.
What I didn’t expect was how much Toronto itself would become part of the story.
Why Toronto
Toronto has one of the largest Croatian diaspora communities outside of Croatia itself, and you feel it the second you arrive. This wasn’t a host city that tolerated Croatian fans for a night — it was a city that already had the infrastructure of belonging built in. It was a city where Croatian culture already existed—where cafés, restaurants, churches, and generations of families had built a sense of home long before FIFA arrived. The kind of place where you can find someone from your own village, someone you’ve never met, simply because you recognized each other’s flag.
That was the trip’s first unforgettable moment.
Where I Stayed: Nester Finn
I stayed at Nester Finn, a short walk from the stadium, and it was the kind of stay that makes you reconsider what a one-night trip can feel like. More apartment than hotel room, the stay included a full kitchen, separate bedroom, living room, washer, balcony, and thoughtful design that never felt excessive. Everything was modern, spotless, and quietly intentional.
The small details were what stayed with me: lavender pouches left for better sleep, the kind of thoughtful, quiet hospitality that doesn’t announce itself. It’s hushpitality in practice.
Croatia House: A Full Day Before the Match
The match itself wasn’t the only event. The Croatian community in Toronto built an entire day around it through Croatia House TO2026, hosted at the Toronto Event Centre, just steps from the stadium.
The night before there was a party hosted with Croatian fans that immediately put you in the zone. It didn’t even feel like being in Canada anymore with such incredible energy and lively fans. We arrived late but it was worth every minute.
The next day there was also a pre-game celebration starting in the early afternoon, with a live band, a DJ, food, and an outdoor covered patio that somehow never had a line for a drink — no small feat with that many people in one place.
The food told its own story: alongside the usual stadium-day staples, there was ćevapi and burek, plates that tasted like home no matter how far from home you actually were, and Croatian beer that sold out before the day was through. People had come from across Canada, the U.S., and beyond, each claiming a cabana repping their own city. Naturally, I spent the afternoon in the Croatia New York cabana.
That’s the thing about diaspora gatherings like this one — you’re not just watching a game together. You’re recognizing each other.
Walking Beneath The Flag
Before kickoff, supporters gathered behind a Croatian flag unlike anything I’d ever seen. Hundreds of fans lifted it overhead, carrying it together as it stretched across the crowd toward the stadium.
Photographs don’t quite capture the feeling. Walking beneath it, surrounded by thousands of voices singing in unison, was less about seeing the flag than becoming part of it.
It’s one of those moments that only exists if you’re physically there.
The Match
I’ll be honest: it wasn’t Croatia’s best performance. The game was tense in a way that tested patience more than it rewarded it. But football has a way of making you forget the rough patches the moment the result lands — and Croatia found their win, 1-0, in a match that mattered far more than the scoreline alone suggests.
Because this wasn’t just any game. It was Luka Modrić’s 200th appearance for the Croatian national team — the first Croatian ever to reach the milestone and only the fourth men’s international footballer in history to do so. To be in that stadium as the sun dropped behind the stands, the whole crowd on its feet singing, watching a legend mark a moment that few players will ever touch — that’s not something you plan for. That’s something you simply get to witness, and feel lucky that you did.
I was a part of history and I’ll never forget it.
After the Match
The celebration didn’t end at the final whistle. Croatia House hosted a post-game party that same night,back at the pre-game location, with a live DJ playing Croatian music well into the early morning. The whole day — pre-game, match, post-game — happened within blocks of each other, which meant there was never a moment where the energy actually broke. It simply moved from one room to the next.
The One Meal
Outside of the football itself, there was exactly one meal that wasn’t tied to a match-day spread, and it was worth the detour: Gladstone Café inside Gladstone House. Service was warm and unhurried, and the steak sandwich and fries I ordered earned every bit of a perfect score.
What I’m Taking With Me
Twenty-four hours isn’t long. But it was enough to remind me that some trips aren’t about how much you do — they’re about how fully you show up for the thing you came for. Toronto gave me a community I didn’t know I’d find, a legend’s record-breaking night, and a reminder that this World Cup, more than anything else this year, is going to be about moments like this one: brief, unplanned, and impossible to forget.
It’s also clear this moment is bigger than one match. American travel to Croatia has grown more than 30% since 2019, and the country has used this World Cup as a stage to introduce itself to U.S. audiences all over again — new campaign films, new faces, the same enduring pull. I felt a small piece of that pull myself, twenty-four hours at a time.
Next stop: Philadelphia, for Croatia vs. Ghana. Ajmo Vatreni
Follow along on Instagram @angelica_e for real-time coverage from the road.
Related Reading
- Where to Watch Croatia at the 2026 FIFA World Cup in NYC: Bars, Fan Zones & More
- Croatia at the 2026 FIFA World Cup: A Croatian-American’s Guide to Following the Vatreni
