NL, is the second tier of the football league system in Croatia.

NL is operated by the Croatian Football Federation, which also was formed in 1991, contributing (along with the newly formed Football Association of Slovenia) to the dissolution of the Football Association of Yugoslavia.

Each of these two leagues comprised twelve teams playing under a system pretty much identical to the one in the HNL.

However, since the start of the 2006–07 season, the First Football League consisted of at least twelve teams from the entire country.

From the inaugural merged season in 2006–07 until 2021–22, the division was known as the Second Football League (Croatian: Druga nogometna liga), but was renamed as were the other leagues of the Croatian football system for the start of the 2022–23 season.