Odbrojavanje počinje sada.

It is a noun, specifically a verbal noun formed from the verb odbrojavati / odbrojati = to count down.

The ending -anje is very common in Croatian for making nouns that mean the act or process of doing something. So odbrojavanje literally means counting down, and in natural English it is usually translated as countdown.

Here, odbrojavanje is in the nominative singular because it is the subject of the sentence: it is the thing that begins.

It is also neuter in gender, which is very common for nouns ending in -anje.

Because brojanje means counting in a general sense, while odbrojavanje specifically means counting down.

So:

• brojanje = counting
• odbrojavanje = countdown / counting down

If you want the idea of numbers moving toward zero, odbrojavanje is the correct word.

Počinje is the 3rd person singular present tense form of počinjati, which means to begin or to be starting.

So počinje means begins or is starting.

It is 3rd person singular because the subject, odbrojavanje, is singular.

This is a question of aspect, which is very important in Croatian.

These two related verbs are:

• počinjati = imperfective
• početi = perfective

Their present forms are different:

• počinje = from počinjati
• počne = from početi

In a sentence like this, počinje is the natural choice because it describes something beginning right now or as an ongoing event. Počne is not the normal form here.

Sada means now.

It makes the timing explicit: the countdown begins now, not later.

Without it, Odbrojavanje počinje is still a correct sentence, but sada adds immediacy and emphasis.

Yes. sad and sada both mean now.

The difference is mostly in style:

• sada = full form, slightly more neutral or careful
• sad = very common in everyday speech, slightly more conversational

So Odbrojavanje počinje sad is also natural Croatian.

No, not completely. Croatian word order is fairly flexible.

Odbrojavanje počinje sada is a neutral, standard order.

You could also say:

• Sada počinje odbrojavanje — puts more emphasis on now
• Počinje odbrojavanje sada — possible, but less neutral

So the original sentence is a very natural default version.

Because Croatian does not have articles like English the or a/an.

So odbrojavanje can mean the countdown or a countdown, depending on context. In this sentence, English would normally translate it as the countdown.

A rough English-friendly pronunciation is:

od-bro-ya-va-nye po-CHIN-ye SA-da

Helpful sound notes:

• j sounds like English y
• č sounds like ch in church
• nj sounds like ny in canyon

Croatian spelling is fairly phonetic, so pronunciation is usually consistent once you know the sound values.

Yes. Since it is a verbal noun, it can literally feel like the act of counting down.

So depending on context, it could be understood as:

• The countdown begins now
• Counting down begins now

But in natural English, The countdown begins now is the most idiomatic translation here.