Bosnia and Herzegovina appeared for the first time in a FIFA World Cup at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil,[1][2] and remains the only time the team participated at a major international tournament to date.
Although Serbia is accepted by FIFA as the official successor of Yugoslavia, Bosnian players have played a role in World Cup history before their independence in 1992.
Yugoslavia qualified for the World Cup eight times between 1930 and 1990. While in the early editions Yugoslavia was mainly represented by Serbs, the squads grew more inclusive over time.
A notable early appearance of a Bosnian player at a FIFA World Cup was in 1962, when striker Arman Spahić broke an opponent's leg in a brutal foul. Although he was not carded by the referee, he was sent home by his own federation and was never called up for an international match again.
More positively, several Bosnian players were part of the 1974 first team line-up that advanced from the group stage unbeaten and ahead of Brazil. Striker Dušan Bajević scored three goals in one of the highest World Cup victories of all time: Yugoslavia's 9–0 against Zaire. Defender Josip Katalinski also scored during that game. Other Bosnians from that years team include goalkeeper Enver Marić and defender Enver Hadžiabdić.
Playmaker Safet Sušić, often considered to be the best Bosnian player of all time, represented Yugoslavia at the World Cup both in 1982 and 1990. The team that reached the quarter-finals in 1990 was captained by Zlatko Vujović, another player of Bosnian heritage.