2010–11 Prva HNL
| Season | 2010–11 |
|---|---|
| Champions |
Dinamo Zagreb 13th Croatian title 17th domestic title |
| Relegated | Hrvatski Dragovoljac |
| Champions League | Dinamo Zagreb |
| Europa League |
Hajduk Split RNK Split Varaždin |
| Matches played | 240 |
| Goals scored | 531 (2.21 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Ivan Krstanović (19) |
| Biggest home win | Hajduk Split 6–1 Istra 1961 |
| Biggest away win | Hrvatski Dragovoljac 0–6 Dinamo Zagreb |
| Highest scoring | Hajduk Split 6–1 Istra 1961 |
| Average attendance | 1,888 |
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← 2009–10
2011–12 →
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The 2010–11 Croatian First Football League (officially known as T-Com Prva HNL for sponsorship reasons) was the twentieth season of the Croatian First Football League, the national championship for men's association football teams in Croatia, since its establishment in 1992. It began on 23 July 2010 and ended on 21 May 2011. Dinamo Zagreb were the defending champions, having won their twelfth championship title (and fifth consecutive title) the previous season, and they defended the title again.
Amid a considerable amount of criticism, the Association of Prva HNL Clubs had decided to expand the league from 12 to 16 clubs for the 2009–10 season. However, while the league format is regulated by the association of member clubs, each club must also obtain a football licence for top-flight competitions issued by the Croatian Football Federation and which applies criteria prescribed by UEFA, which are mainly concerned with the standard of their grounds and clubs' financial stability.
On 5 April 2010 only four clubs had met the requirements needed for these licenses - Dinamo Zagreb, Inter Zaprešić, Slaven Belupo and NK Zagreb. Clubs whose requests were rejected were allowed to appeal by 15 April, and the licensing department of the Croatian Football Federation was required to officially respond to these appeals by 3 May 2010.
In addition to this, only four Druga HNL clubs had officially requested a license, e.g. only four clubs expressed interest in competing in the 2010–11 Prva HNL in case they win promotion - RNK Split, Hrvatski dragovoljac, Solin and Mosor. According to the official Prva HNL statute at the time, if less than 16 clubs managed to obtain licenses by the beginning of the 2010–11 season, the format would be automatically reduced to 12 clubs. In such a scenario the five bottom-placed teams from the previous season would be relegated and only the winners of the Druga HNL would get promoted to top level.
On 6 May 2010 the Croatian Football Federation announced that, after the appeals had been resolved, a total of 16 clubs were granted top level licences:
(Note: Clubs listed in italics obtained licences for grounds owned by other clubs as their own grounds were found unsuitable for top level matches.)
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