Sportske novosti Yellow Shirt award

The Sportske novosti Yellow Shirt award or SN Yellow Shirt for short (Croatian: Žuta majica Sportskih novosti) is an annual football award given by the only Croatian sports daily Sportske novosti. It is awarded to the best football player playing in the Croatian First League at the end of every season, based on post-match ratings awarded by sports journalists over the course of a season.

Established in 1953, the award was originally sponsored by the defunct Zagreb-based sports newspaper Narodni sport and its sports weekly Sportska panorama, and was awarded to the Player of the Season in the Yugoslav First League. In February 1962 Narodni sport was acquired by the Vjesnik publishing company and renamed Sportske novosti (SN). Since 1991 and the breakup of Yugoslavia the paper gives the award to the best players in the Prva HNL, Croatian top flight.

As of 2010 only three players have won the award on more than occasion, with each of them winning two consecutive awards:

• Igor Cvitanović (1996, 1997)
• Ivica Olić (2002, 2003)
• Eduardo (2006, 2007)

Winners

Yugoslav league

Croatian league

Source: Nogometni-magazin.com

Notes on club name changes:

• Dinamo Zagreb changed their name to "HAŠK Građanski" in June 1991 and then again in February 1993 to "Croatia Zagreb". They reverted back to "Dinamo Zagreb" in February 2000.
• The present-day NK Varaždin was called "Varteks" from 1958 until June 2010.

See also

• Sportske novosti
• Croatian Footballer of the Year
• Prva HNL Player of the Year