10 Most Popular Bosnian Football (Soccer) Players

Icon for soccer from Bosnia and Herzegovina photo by Simo82- Wikimedia commons

10 Most Popular Bosnian Football (Soccer) Players

Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia, is a Balkan country located at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe. Sarajevo is the country’s capital and largest city.

Bosnia and Herzegovina shares borders with Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to the north and southwest. In the south, it features a 20-kilometer-long (12-mile-long) Adriatic Sea coast within the Mediterranean that borders the town of Neum.

Bosnia and Herzegovina has produced many athletes, both as a Yugoslav state and independently after 1992. Football is the most popular sport in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It was created in 1903, but its popularity skyrocketed following World War I. The Yugoslav Championship was won by Bosnian clubs FK Sarajevo and eljezniar. 

Bosnian players from different ethnic backgrounds and generations make up the Yugoslav national football squad. The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the nation of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s first major competition.

Bosnia’s national football team however was defeated by Finland in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers match hence losing the opportunity to qualify for the prestigious competition taking place from Sunday, November 20 in Qatar(check out best footballers from Qatar ) this year.

The team features well-known athletes from different ethnic backgrounds around the world. Here are the 10 most popular Bosnian players.

1. Edin Dzeko

Edin Dzeko, detail from the match Austria – Bosnia and Herzegovina photo by User: Ailura – Wikimedia commons

The Bosnia and Herzegovina national team is captained by Bosnian professional footballer Edin Džeko, who plays as a striker for Serie A Team Inter Milan.

Three years in a row, Džeko won the title of Bosnian Footballer of the Year. Bosnian and Herzegovina football fans and journalists have dubbed him “Bosnian Diamond” or simply “Diamond.”  On March 28, 2017, Dzeko became the first player from Bosnia to reach 50 goals for his country.

He made his 100th appearance for Bosnia on March 23, 2019, in a 2-1 victory over Armenia in the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers.

2. Miralem Pjanić

Miralem Pjanić photo by beIN SPORTS Türkiye – Wikimedia commons

Miralem Pjanić is a Bosnian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Sharjah of the UAE Pro League and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team.

Pjanić began his professional career at Metz, where he spent one season. Pjanić, a former Luxembourg youth international, made his senior international debut for Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2008 and has since earned over one hundred caps and scored eighteen goals.  He represents his country in its first big tournament, the FIFA World Cup in 2014. Pjanić was ranked 55th in The Guardian’s list of the “100 best players in the world” in 2015.

He was rated 50th on the same list in 2019 while still under contract with Barcelona. During his tenure with Roma, Pjanić was nicknamed “il Piccolo Principe” (“the Little Prince”) and was regarded as one of the most promising young midfielders of his generation, making Don Balón’s list of the 100 best young players in the world in 2010.

3. Asmir Begović

Asmir Begovic of Chelsea gives out orders during the Champions League game against Maccabi Tel-Aviv. photo by joshjdss – Wikimedia commons

Asmir Begović is a Bosnian professional football goalkeeper who plays for Premier League side Everton as well as the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team.

Begovićbegan his professional career in the summer of 2003 with the English club Portsmouth.  Begović represented Canada at the youth level, competing in the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup. In 2009, he opted to switch allegiances and represent his birthplace, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

He quickly established himself as their number one goalie and helped them qualify for their first big competition, the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

Begović played in a football video game against fellow professional Alphonso Davies in April 2020 to generate donations for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

4. Rade Krunić

Soccer U21 European Championship qualifier Austria versus Bosnia and Herzegovina St. Pölten, September 5, 2014, Rade Krunić photo by Ailura – Wikimedia commons

Rade Krunić is a Bosnian professional footballer who now plays for Serie A club Milan as well as the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team.

Krunić began his career at Sutjeska Foča before joining Donji Srem in 2013. In 2014, he joined Hellas Verona, who later loaned him back to Donji Srem. In 2015, he switched to Borac Čačak. Krunić signed with Empoli later that year. He was traded to Milan in 2019.

Krunić, a former Bosnia and Herzegovina junior international made his senior international debut in 2016, garnering over 20 caps subsequently. Krunić scored his first senior international goal on March 23, 2019, against Armenia in a UEFA Euro 2020 qualifier.

5. Sead Kolašinac

Sead Kolašinac Arsenal v PSG International Champions Cup 2018 Singapore National Stadium photo by Chensiyuan – Wikimedia commons

Sead Kolašinac is a Bosnian professional footballer who now plays for Ligue 1 club Marseille as well as the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team.

Kolašinac, a former German youth international, made his senior international debut for Bosnia & Herzegovina in 2013 and has since earned over 50 caps. He represented his country in its first major event, the FIFA World Cup in 2014.

Kolašinac was a part of the Amazon Original sports docuseries All or Nothing: Arsenal, which recorded the club by spending time behind the scenes with the coaching staff and players both on and off the field throughout the 2021-22 season.

6. Elvis Sarić

Elvis Sarić is a Bosnian professional footballer who currently plays as a midfielder for Suwon Bluewings of the K League 1. Sarić debuted for Bosnia & Herzegovina as a senior international in 2018, accumulating 19 caps until 2021.

Sarić I obtained his first senior call-up to Bosnia and Herzegovina in January 2018, for friendlies against the United States and Mexico. On January 28, he made his debut against the former.

Sarić scored his first senior international goal against Northern Ireland on September 8 in a 2018-19 UEFA Nations League match.

7. Luka Menalo

Luka Menalo is a Bosnian professional footballer who currently plays as a winger for Dinamo Zagreb in the Croatian League and the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team.

Menalo began his senior career at apljina before moving on to iroki Brijeg in 2014. In 2018, he joined Dinamo Zagreb, who loaned him to Slaven Belupo, Olimpija Ljubljana, and Rijeka over the next three seasons.

Menalo competed for Bosnia & Herzegovina at both the under-19 and under-21 levels. He could have represented Croatia because he was born in Croatia and is of Croatian origin, but he declined the offers.

He received his first senior call-up in January 2018, for friendlies against the United States and Mexico. On January 28, Menalo made his debut in a goalless draw against the former.

In the 2022 FIFA, World Cup qualification game against Kazakhstan on September 7, 2021, Menalo scored his first goal for the national team, giving Bosnia and Herzegovina a 2-1 lead in what would ultimately be a 2-2 tie.

8. Hasan Salihamidžić

Hasan Salihamidžić in 2009 photo by Mattia Brambilla – Wikimedia commons

Hasan Salihamidžić, nicknamed Brazzo, is a former professional footballer from Bosnia who is now the sports director of the Bundesliga team Bayern Munich.

After beginning his club career with Hamburger SV, he created a reputation for himself while playing for Bayern Munich for nine seasons, winning the Bundesliga six times, the DFB-Pokal four times, the UEFA Champions League in 2000-01, and the Intercontinental Cup in 2001.

He also spent four seasons with the Italian team Juventus. He appeared in 42 games and scored six goals for Bosnia & Herzegovina. Many consider him to be one of Bosnia’s most accomplished football players in recent years.

9. Vedad Ibišević

The photo shows Vedad Ibišević (Hertha BSC). photo by Steindy (talk) – Wikimedia commons

Vedad Ibišević is a retired Bosnian professional footballer who played forward. He is presently a member of Hertha BSC’s coaching staff.

 Ibišević began his professional career at Paris Saint-Germain. He spent two years on loan with Dijon before moving to Germany, where he played for Alemannia Aachen, 1899 Hoffenheim, and VfB Stuttgart before joining Hertha BSC and later Schalke 04. In 2008, he was named Bosnian Footballer of the Year by Idol Nacije.

 Ibišević, a former Bosnia & Herzegovina youth international, made his senior international debut in 2007.  Until 2018, he had 83 caps and 28 goals. Ibišević’s goal qualified Bosnia and Herzegovina for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, the country’s first major tournament. He also scored the team’s first goal in the competition.

10. Smail Prevljak

UEFA Euroleague group stage 2nd Round photo by Werner100359 – Wikimedia commons

Smail Prevljak is a Bosnian professional footballer who now plays for Belgian First Division A club Eupen as well as the Bosnia and Herzegovina national team. Prevljak played for the Bosnia and Herzegovina under-21 team, which was coached by Darko Nestorovi.

He received his first senior call-up in March 2018, for friendlies against Bulgaria and Senegal. On March 23, he made his debut against Senegal.  Prevljak scored his first senior international goal against the Netherlands on November 15, 2020, in a 2020-21 UEFA Nations League match.