Croatia dual national Sigur switches to Canada

Midfielder Niko Sigur has switched eligibility to Canada’s men’s national team despite previously committing to a future with Croatia.

Sigur, a skilled, technical and dynamic defensive midfielder, was born in Burnaby, British Columbia and is a dual national. Following an application to FIFA, Sigur will now be eligible for selection for Canada’s upcoming friendlies against the United States and Mexico on September 7 and 10, but is nursing a minor injury.

Multiple sources said Canada is targeting the October international window for Sigur to make his debut. On Tuesday, Canada Soccer announced an October 15 friendly in Toronto against Panama. Even if Sigur is not selected to play for Canada, he may join the Canadian camp to better understand the team and staff.

“It was an honor to represent Croatia, which is a football superpower and which is my family’s homeland,” Sigur said. “But with the passage of time I felt that I wanted to represent the country where I grew up and started my football career, Canada.

“I appreciate the open communication and understanding of this decision by HNS (Croatian Football Federation) and I thank the coaches and teammates in the national team for the time I spent as a young Croatian national team member. I will always be a big fan of Croatia, to whom I wish good luck and success.”

Playing in Canada’s upcoming friendlies would not cap-tie Sigur, however. He would only be committed to Canada if he featured for Jesse Marsch’s side in the CONCACAF Nations League quarter-finals in November.

In May 2023, while former Canada men’s national team head coach John Herdman was courting Sigur to play for Canada, the midfielder committed to Croatia.

“Croatia is the homeland of my family, and that’s why I want to wear that beautiful Croatian shirt in the future. I appreciate and love Canada where I lived and grew up playing football, but I feel that this is the right and best decision,” Sigur said in a X post shared by the Croatian Football Federation.

Sigur has since made nine appearances for Croatia’s Under-21s, including starting all three of Croatia’s games at the 2023 UEFA Under-21 Championship.

Croatia left Sigur off their squad for the upcoming Nations League matches in September, with Sigur’s perceived lack of opportunities with Croatia’s senior team believed to have fuelled, at least in part, his decision to apply for a one-time switch and represent Canada, according to people familiar with his application.

The 20-year-old has logged 49 appearances for Hajduk Split, including three in the UEFA Conference League qualifiers.

Sigur joining the Vancouver Whitecaps academy in 2018. In 2021, he moved to Ontario to play for League 1 semi-professional side Vaughan Azzuri and spent one season with York University, where he played under the tutelage of highly-regarded Canadian coach Carmine Isacco. Isacco has previously coached with Canada’s men’s national team and has developed former Canadian national team players at club level.

Sigur’s switch to Canada bolsters a Canadian midfield led by Stephen Eustaquio and Ismael Kone. While it feels unlikely Sigur will challenge for a starting midfield spot as things stand, continued development in Croatia could bolster Sigur’s chances of landing a starting spot ahead of the 2026 World Cup, and he can also play at right-back if necessary.

In his first two months in change, head coach Marsch led his team in two friendlies against high-ranked opponents in the Netherlands and France and guided Canada to a surprise run to the Copa America semi-finals.

Adding more dual nationals and young players became a key focus for Marsch in the months after Copa America. While Herdman was no stranger to adding key dual nationals in his tenure, such as Eustaquio, Marsch has used his team’s strong recent results as part of his pitch.

(Photo: Matija Habljak/Getty Images)