Photo: Bill Belichick Receives Croatian Citizenship, Honored By Country's President
Scott Polacek@@ScottPolacek
Featured Columnist IVJune 5, 2024
Bill Belichick is taking full advantage of his first summer when he isn't preparing for an NFL season as a head coach since before the 1991 season.
As ESPN's Mike Reiss noted Tuesday, the former New England Patriots head coach is visiting Croatia and met with both Prime Minister Andrej Plenković and President Zoran Milanović.
He also received a Croatian certificate of nationality.
"In his meeting with Milanović, Belichick was honored with the Order of the Croatian Star featuring the effigy of Franjo Bučar—an esteemed recognition for promoting the reputation and interests of Croatia over his career," Reiss wrote.
That wasn't all, as he also attended the Croatian national soccer team's 3-0 win over North Macedonia on Monday and met with the team.
HNS @HNS_CFF"I became a Croatian citizen, now I'm one of you! I'm proud of my Croatian origins, and it's an honour to be here. Yesterday, you were fantastic" 💬<br><br>The greatest coach in <a href="https://twitter.com/NFL?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NFL</a> history, <a href="https://twitter.com/Patriots?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Patriots</a> legend Bill Belichick, visited <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Croatia?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Croatia</a> squad today and shared his knowledge and… <a href="https://t.co/Pzt1WL0zfQ">pic.twitter.com/Pzt1WL0zfQ</a>
Reiss cited a local newspaper in Croatia that quoted Belichick's comments to the soccer team.
"My grandparents came to the USA in 1910 from Draganić and had a difficult life, but that's why my father [Steve], also an American football coach, managed to live his American dream," he said. "Yesterday, I became a Croatian citizen. Now I'm one of you."
Andrew Callahan of the Boston Herald noted Belichick's connections to Croatia were celebrated, and he was even a featured speaker at the Third Annual Sunset Sports Media Festival:
Andrew Callahan @_AndrewCallahanHow's this for a summer vacation?<br><br>Bill Belichick is in Croatia, where he received a certificate of nationality (the main document to obtain Croatian citizenship) from the country's prime minister today. Belichick was also honored with a prestigious medal given to him by the… <a href="https://t.co/BIso4Ggpb2">pic.twitter.com/BIso4Ggpb2</a>
Belichick is arguably the greatest coach in NFL history and built a resume that includes six Super Bowl titles, three Associated Press Coach of the Year awards and nine Super Bowl appearances.
Despite all his success in his 24 years in charge of the Patriots, he was unable to land a coaching job this offseason.
Perhaps he will find one next offseason, which would once again given him the opportunity to wear the Croatian pin and Croatian necktie he sometimes wore he sometimes wore to press conferences.
