Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
Croatia secured its first U16 world water polo title by defeating Spain 10-7 in the final before over 1,000 home fans. Croatia ended Spain's reign as champion and remained unbeaten throughout the tournament, including a narrow 12-11 win over Serbia. This marked a significant improvement from their previous seventh-place finishes. In the final, Croatia pulled ahead from a 6-6 tie with a decisive 4-1 run in the last six minutes. Spain had also suffered a 9-8 defeat to Greece earlier in the tournament, tallying their second loss. Ante Domazet opened the scoring for Croatia from a penalty, and Adri Lopez netted multiple goals for Spain. Key goals by Duje Srzic and Petar Loncaric helped secure the Croatian victory. The match concluded 10-7 in Croatia's favor.
Deni Sappe from Croatia was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, while USA's Alistair Sterrett earned Best Goalkeeper honors. The Media All Star Team featured players from Croatia, USA, Spain, Serbia, and Singapore, with Ryan Chua of Singapore recognized as the top goal-scorer, netting 31 goals.
In the bronze-medal match, Serbia led 5-3 at halftime before the USA outscored them 6-4 in the second half. Serbia equalized late to force a penalty shootout, ultimately securing third place—an improvement from eighth in 2024. The USA finished fourth, moving up from ninth place in 2022. Recently, Croatia and the USA also clashed in the U18 world championship final, where Croatia won 21-20 after penalties. Notably, Aden Shin, a scorer in the U16 tournament, was also part of the U18 team.