| Competition: | Croatian First Football League |
| Season: | 1992 |
| Winners: | Hajduk Split 1st Croatian title 10th domestic title |
| Relegated: | None |
| League Topscorer: | Ardian Kozniku (12) |
| Biggest Home Win: | Hajduk Split 9–0 Dubrovnik (11 March 1992) |
| Biggest Away Win: | Zadar 0–4 NK Zagreb (14 March 1992) |
| Highest Scoring: | Hajduk Split 9–0 Dubrovnik (9 goals) (11 March 1992) |
| Matches: | 132 |
| Total Goals: | 315 |
| Average Attendance: | 2,881 |
| Nextseason: | 1992–93 |
The 1992 Croatian First Football League was the first season of the top Croatian football league. It was the inaugural season of the league established following Croatia's independence from Yugoslavia. Affected by the political and social upheavals stemming from the breakup of Yugoslavia and the early stages of the 1991–95 war, the season was drastically shortened and played over the course of less than four months, from 29 February to 13 June.
The league featured 12 Croatian-based clubs, all of which had previously competed at various levels in the Yugoslav football pyramid. Four of the clubs came from the Yugoslav First League, another four from the Yugoslav Second League, and the remaining four from lower levels.
The format used was a double round robin tournament, with each club playing every other club twice in home and away matches, for a total of 22 rounds. However, five of the clubs based in areas most affected by fighting had to host their matches in other towns around the country, effectively playing the entire season in exile. These were Cibalia and Osijek (based in the eastern part of the country, in the cities of Vinkovci and Osijek) and Zadar, Šibenik and Dubrovnik (based in the southern coastal part of the country, in the cities of Zadar, Šibenik and Dubrovnik).
After four of the five displaced clubs which had played the season in haphazard conditions eventually finished in the bottom four places, the Croatian Football Federation decided against relegating any of them, and opted to expand the format to 16 clubs in the following 1992–93 season.
| Club1 | City / Town | Stadium | Head coach | 1990–91 result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cibalia | Vinkovci | Mladost2 | Mile Petković | 8th in Yugoslav Div 2 |
| Dubrovnik | Dubrovnik | Lapad2 | Mario Bonić | 16th in Yugoslav Div 2 |
| Hajduk Split | Split | Poljud | Stanko Poklepović | 6th in Yugoslav Div 1 |
| HAŠK Građanski | Zagreb | Maksimir | Zdenko Kobeščak | 2nd in Yugoslav Div 1 |
| Inker Zaprešić | Zaprešić | Stadion Inkera | Ilija Lončarević | 2nd in Yugoslav Div 3 West |
| Istra Pula | Pula | Aldo Drosina | Sergio Scoria | 4th in Yugoslav Div 4 West3 |
| Osijek | Osijek | Gradski vrt2 | Stjepan Čordaš | 9th in Yugoslav Div 1 |
| Rijeka | Rijeka | Kantrida | Marijan Jantoljak | 15th in Yugoslav Div 1 |
| Šibenik | Šibenik | Šubićevac2 | Nikica Cukrov | 12th in Yugoslav Div 2 |
| Varteks | Varaždin | Stadion Varteks | Branko Ivanković | 6th in Yugoslav Div 3 West3 |
| Zadar | Zadar | Stanovi2 | Goran Krešimir Vidov | 1st in Yugoslav Div 3 West |
| NK Zagreb | Zagreb | Kranjčevićeva | Ivo Šušak | 2nd in Yugoslav Div 2 |
At the end of the season no teams were relegated as it was decided that the league would expand to 16 clubs for the 1992–93 Croatian First Football League season.
During the season Hajduk Split and HAŠK Građanski took part in European competitions on account of qualification secured at the end of the 1990–91 Yugoslav football season - Dinamo/HAŠK ended up as runners-up in the 1990–91 Yugoslav First League and qualified for 1991–92 UEFA Cup while Hajduk Split won the 1990–91 Yugoslav Cup and qualified for the 1991–92 European Cup Winners' Cup.
However, due to violent fighting in parts of the country, UEFA ordered both clubs to host their European matches abroad, in Austria. Dinamo played their UEFA Cup first round fixture against Trabzonspor in Klagenfurt on 11 September 1991 (losing the tie 3–4 on aggregate), while Hajduk Split played their Cup Winners' Cup first round match against Tottenham Hotspur on 17 September 1991 in Linz (also losing the tie 1–2 on aggregate).
At the end of the 1992 season, neither Hajduk Split (1992 Croatian league champions) nor Inker Zaprešić (1992 Croatian Football Cup winners) could qualify for European competitions in the following 1992–93 season as the Croatian Football Federation, the league's governing body, had not been accepted as full member by UEFA. Since its application was finally accepted by UEFA in June 1993, the first Croatian-qualified clubs entered European competitions in the 1993–94 season.
| Player | For | Against | Date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 May 1992 | ||||
| 2 May 1992 |