Socceroos to play Croatia ahead of World Cup Socceroo Mark Viduka embraces Croatia's Darijo Srna after the teams played a 2-2 draw in Stuttgart at the 2006 World Cup Source: News Limited THE Socceroos are set to play Croatia in a friendly match in Brazil just a week before their opening World Cup clash. The Croatian Football Federation announced the June 6 fixture on its official website today, with the host city and venue yet to be confirmed. It will be both sides' final preparation before the start of their Cup campaigns. World No16 Croatia face host nation and five-time champions Brazil in the tournament's opening game on June 12 in Sao Paulo, while Australia kick off a day later against 15th-ranked Chile in Cuiaba. The last time both sides met was at Germany's 2006 World Cup, where goals from Craig Moore and Harry Kewell saw the Socceroos draw 2-2 to move through to the second-round. National coach Ange Postecoglou has flagged at least two other friendlies in the lead-up to the 2014 showpiece, including an international warm-up in March and a farewell clash at Sydney's ANZ Stadium in May.