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Nicaragua national football team

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Nicaragua
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)La Azul y Blanco (The Blue and White)
Los Pinoleros (The Pinoleros)
AssociationFederación Nicaragüense de Fútbol (FENIFUT)
ConfederationCONCACAF (North America)
Sub-confederationUNCAF (Central America)
Head coachMarco Antonio Figueroa
CaptainJuan Barrera
Most capsJosué Quijano (99)
Top scorerJuan Barrera (25)
Home stadiumEstadio Nacional de Fútbol
FIFA codeNCA
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 133 Increase 1 (28 November 2024)[1]
Highest92 (December 2015)
Lowest193 (May 2001)
First international
 El Salvador 9–0 Nicaragua 
(San Salvador, El Salvador; 1 May 1929)
Biggest win
 Turks and Caicos Islands 0–7 Nicaragua 
(San Cristóbal, Dominican Republic; 27 March 2021)
Biggest defeat
 Honduras 10–0 Nicaragua 
(San José, Costa Rica; 13 March 1946)
 Curaçao 11–1 Nicaragua 
(Guatemala City, Guatemala; 2 March 1950)
CONCACAF Championship / Gold Cup
Appearances5 (first in 1963)
Best resultSixth place (1967)
Medal record

The Nicaragua national football team (Spanish: Selección de fútbol de Nicaragua) represents Nicaragua in men's international football and is controlled by the Nicaraguan Football Federation. Nicaragua achieved their first qualification into a major international competition in 2009, as they qualified for the 2009 Gold Cup as the last entrant from Central America, after a 2–0 victory against Guatemala in the fifth place match in the 2009 Nations Cup.[3] However, the team has never qualified for the FIFA World Cup.

Due to American influence throughout the country's history, baseball has more of a following as both a pursuit and spectator event in Nicaragua than football.

History

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Nicaragua traveled to El Salvador for their first ever international, losing 9–0 to the hosts on 1 May 1929. They did not play another match for over twelve years, until the qualifying group for the 1941 CCCF Championship in Costa Rica. They lost all 4 games: 7–2 to the hosts Costa Rica on 10 May, 8–0 to El Salvador on 13 May, 9–1 to the Netherlands Antilles on 15 May and 5–2 to Panama on 18 May. Therefore, Nicaragua finished bottom of the group and did not make the final group.[4]

Recent times

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After qualifying for the 2019 Gold Cup on the back of finishing ninth in Nations League qualifying, they would go on to finish bottom of the group with losses to Costa Rica, Haiti and Bermuda.[5]

Nicaragua qualified directly for the 2023 Gold Cup and was promoted to Nations League A as group winners in Nations League B but was disqualified on 12 June 2023 for fielding an ineligible player. As a result, they were replaced in the Gold Cup and League A by Trinidad and Tobago, who was the best second-place team overall in League B and must stay in Nations League B.[6]

Team image

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Kit sponsorship

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Kit supplier Period
Spain Joma 2004–2021
Mexico Keuka 2022–2024
Orion 2024- Present

Results and fixtures

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The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win   Draw   Loss   Fixture

2024

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22 March Friendly Peru  2–0  Nicaragua Lima, Peru
20:30 UTC−5
Report Stadium: Estadio Alejandro Villanueva
Referee: Paulo Cesar Zanovelli da Silva (Brazil)
26 March Friendly Nicaragua  0–1  Cuba Managua, Nicaragua
19:00 UTC−6 Report
Stadium: Nicaragua National Football Stadium
Referee: Ricardo Mendoza (Nicaragua)
26 May Friendly Guatemala  1–1  Nicaragua San Jose, United States
17:00 UTC−7
Report
Stadium: PayPal Park
Referee: Jon Freemon (United States)
8 June 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification Belize  0–4  Nicaragua Belmopan, Belize
18:00 UTC−6 Report
Stadium: FFB Field
Referee: Bryan López (Guatemala)
6 September 2024–25 Nations League French Guiana  0–1  Nicaragua Remire-Montjoly, French Guiana
16:00 UTC−3 Report
Stadium: Stade Municipal Dr. Edmard Lama
Attendance: 450
Referee: Julio Luna (Guatemala)
10 September 2024–25 Nations League Cuba  1–1  Nicaragua Santiago de Cuba, Cuba
16:00 UTC−4
Report
Stadium: Estadio Antonio Maceo
Attendance: 3,565
Referee: Pierre-Luc Lauzière (Canada)
10 October 2024–25 Nations League Nicaragua  0–2  Jamaica Managua, Nicaragua
20:00 UTC−6 Report
Stadium: Estadio Nacional de Fútbol
Attendance: 16,630
Referee: Mario Escobar (Guatemala)

2025

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Coaching staff

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Position Name
Head coach Chile Marco Antonio Figueroa
Technical director Nicaragua Roger Rodriguez
Assistant coach Nicaragua Tyron Acevedo
Goalkeeping coach Nicaragua Carlos Mendieta
Physical coordinator Nicaragua Jaime Ruiz
Doctor Nicaragua Dr. Cupertino Borrell
Physiotherapist Nicaragua Zamir Cerna
Team coordinator Nicaragua Cesar Castro Trinidad
Team coordinator Nicaragua Nestor Díaz

Coaching history

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Players

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Current squad

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The following players were called up to the squad for 2024–25 CONCACAF Nations League matches against Jamaica and French Guiana on 10 and 14 October 2024.[7]

Caps and goals correct as of 14 October 2024, after the match against French Guiana.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1GK Miguel Rodríguez (2003-06-13) 13 June 2003 (age 21) 13 0 Finland SJK
1GK Alyer López (1999-05-16) 16 May 1999 (age 25) 4 0 Nicaragua Managua
1GK Jason Vega (1995-11-06) 6 November 1995 (age 29) 3 0 Nicaragua Real Estelí

2DF Josué Quijano (1991-03-10) 10 March 1991 (age 33) 99 3 Nicaragua Real Estelí
2DF Marvin Fletes (1997-11-12) 12 November 1997 (age 27) 37 2 Nicaragua Real Estelí
2DF Óscar Acevedo (1997-03-18) 18 March 1997 (age 27) 29 2 Nicaragua Real Estelí
2DF Juan Luis Pérez (1999-06-29) 29 June 1999 (age 25) 15 3 Nicaragua Diriangén
2DF Christian Reyes (1998-01-03) 3 January 1998 (age 26) 12 0 Costa Rica AD Municipal Liberia
2DF Justing Cano (2002-03-02) 2 March 2002 (age 22) 3 0 Nicaragua Diriangén
2DF Anyelo Velásquez (2004-12-22) 22 December 2004 (age 19) 1 0 Nicaragua Diriangén

3MF Juan Barrera (captain) (1989-05-02) 2 May 1989 (age 35) 93 26 Nicaragua Managua
3MF Jason Coronel (1993-10-06) 6 October 1993 (age 31) 32 0 Nicaragua Diriangén
3MF Matías Moldskred Belli (1997-08-12) 12 August 1997 (age 27) 29 7 Norway Sandnes Ulf
3MF Harold Medina (2002-01-30) 30 January 2002 (age 22) 27 3 Nicaragua Real Estelí
3MF Henry Niño (1997-10-03) 3 October 1997 (age 27) 25 1 Nicaragua Real Estelí
3MF Junior Arteaga (1999-12-09) 9 December 1999 (age 24) 18 2 Nicaragua Diriangén
3MF Jacob Montes (1998-12-20) 20 December 1998 (age 25) 11 4 Belgium RWD Molenbeek

4FW Jaime Moreno (1995-03-30) 30 March 1995 (age 29) 42 13 Finland SJK
4FW Byron Bonilla (1993-08-30) 30 August 1993 (age 31) 35 6 Nicaragua Real Estelí
4FW Widman Talavera (2003-01-12) 12 January 2003 (age 21) 15 3 Nicaragua Real Estelí
4FW Bancy Hernández (2000-06-27) 27 June 2000 (age 24) 14 2 Nicaragua Real Estelí
4FW Ariel Arauz (2001-05-30) 30 May 2001 (age 23) 3 0 Costa Rica CS Herediano
4FW Edgar Castillo (2002-05-21) 21 May 2002 (age 22) 1 0 Nicaragua CS Sebaco
4FW Ronald Palacios (2002-09-09) 9 September 2002 (age 22) 1 0 Nicaragua Managua

Recent call-ups

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The following players have been called up for the team in the last twelve months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK César Salandia (2004-06-13) 13 June 2004 (age 20) 5 0 Nicaragua Real Estelí v.  Cuba, 10 September 2024

DF Pablo Rodríguez (2000-06-04) 4 June 2000 (age 24) 1 0 Nicaragua Managua v.  Belize, 8 June 2024
DF Evert Martínez (2002-03-08) 8 March 2002 (age 22) 1 0 Nicaragua Real Estelí v.  Cuba, 26 March 2024
DF Melvin Hernández (1994-04-26) 26 April 1994 (age 30) 12 0 Nicaragua UNAN Managua v.  Dominican Republic, 21 November 2023
DF Jeffrey Chávez (1997-02-10) 10 February 1997 (age 27) 1 0 Costa Rica Municipal Liberia v.  Dominican Republic, 21 November 2023
DF Cristhiam Quinto (2001-01-17) 17 January 2001 (age 23) 0 0 Nicaragua Managua v.  Dominican Republic, 21 November 2023

MF Jonathan Moncada (1998-01-03) 3 January 1998 (age 26) 16 0 Nicaragua Diriangén v.  Cuba, 10 September 2024
MF Nextaly Rodríguez (1998-03-03) 3 March 1998 (age 26) 10 1 Costa Rica AD Municipal Liberia v.  Cuba, 10 September 2024
MF Kevin Serapio (1996-04-09) 9 April 1996 (age 28) 28 1 Nicaragua Managua v.  Belize, 8 June 2024
MF Jeremy Cuarezma (2000-05-28) 28 May 2000 (age 24) 2 0 Nicaragua Managua v.  Montserrat, 6 June 2024

FW Luis Fernando Coronel (1997-02-25) 25 February 1997 (age 27) 18 3 Nicaragua Diriangén v.  Cuba, 10 September 2024
FW Abner Acuña (1997-03-05) 5 March 1997 (age 27) 11 0 Nicaragua Managua FC v.  Cuba, 10 September 2024
FW Brayan López (1990-06-03) 3 June 1990 (age 34) 11 0 Costa Rica Puntarenas v.  Cuba, 26 March 2024
FW Anderson Treminio (1997-04-17) 17 April 1997 (age 27) 8 0 Bolivia Real Santa Cruz v.  Cuba, 26 March 2024
FW Ariagner Smith (1998-12-13) 13 December 1998 (age 25) 20 7 Lithuania FK Panevėžys v.  Dominican Republic, 21 November 2023

INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury.
PRE Preliminary squad.
RET Player retired from the national team.
SUS Player is serving suspension.
WD Player withdrew from the squad due to non-injury issue.
INE Ineligible player.

Records

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As of 15 October 2024[8]
Players in bold are still active with Nicaragua.

Most appearances

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Josué Quijano is Nicaragua's most-capped player with 99 international appearances.
Rank Player Caps Goals Career
1 Josué Quijano 99 3 2011–present
2 Juan Barrera 93 26 2009–present
3 Manuel Rosas 60 2 2013–2022
4 David Solórzano 49 1 1999–2014
5 Carlos Chavarría 44 11 2013–2021
6 Jaime Moreno 42 13 2016–present
7 Marlon López 40 0 2014–2020
8 Luis Copete 39 3 2014–2023
Denis Espinoza 39 1 2004–2021
10 Carlos Alonso 37 0 1999–2011
Marvin Fletes 37 2 2019–present

Top goalscorers

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Juan Barrera is Nicaragua's all-time top scorer with 26 goals.
Rank Player Goals Caps Ratio Career
1 Juan Barrera 26 93 0.28 2009–present
2 Jaime Moreno 13 42 0.31 2016–present
3 Emilio Palacios 11 26 0.42 2001–2009
Carlos Chavarría 11 44 0.25 2013–2021
5 Raúl Leguías 8 23 0.35 2011–2016
6 Ariagner Smith 7 20 0.35 2017–present
Matías Moldskred 7 29 0.24 2021–present
8 Byron Bonilla 6 35 0.17 2016–present
Luis Galeano 6 35 0.17 2015–2022
10 Jacob Montes 4 11 0.36 2023–present
Rudel Calero 4 26 0.15 2001–2011
Samuel Wilson 4 29 0.14 2001–2013

Competitive record

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FIFA World Cup

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The Nicaragua national football team has never qualified for the World Cup. Their latest attempt was for the 2022 World Cup, when the side failed to advance from the first round.

FIFA World Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA Pld W D L GF GA
Uruguay 1930 Not a FIFA member Not a FIFA member
Italy 1934
France 1938
Brazil 1950 Did not enter Declined participation
Switzerland 1954
Sweden 1958
Chile 1962
England 1966
Mexico 1970
West Germany 1974
Argentina 1978
Spain 1982
Mexico 1986
Italy 1990
United States 1994 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 1 10
France 1998 2 0 0 2 1 3
South Korea Japan 2002 4 0 0 4 0 10
Germany 2006 2 0 1 1 3 6
South Africa 2010 2 0 0 2 0 3
Brazil 2014 4 2 0 2 5 7
Russia 2018 6 5 0 1 15 5
Qatar 2022 3 2 0 1 10 1
Canada Mexico United States 2026 Qualification in progress 2 2 0 0 8 1
Morocco Portugal Spain 2030 To be determined To be determined
Saudi Arabia 2034
Total 0/19 27 11 1 15 43 46

CONCACAF Gold Cup

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CONCACAF Championship & Gold Cup record Qualification record
Year Round Position Pld W D* L GF GA Squad Pld W D L GF GA
El Salvador 1963 Group stage 8th 4 0 0 4 2 15 Squad Qualified automatically
Guatemala 1965 Did not qualify 2 1 0 1 2 4
Honduras 1967 Sixth place 6th 5 0 1 4 3 12 Squad 2 1 0 1 4 4
Costa Rica 1969 Did not enter Did not enter
Trinidad and Tobago 1971 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 2 4
Haiti 1973 Did not enter Did not enter
Mexico 1977
Honduras 1981
1985
1989
United States 1991 Did not qualify 2 0 0 2 2 5
Mexico United States 1993 2 0 0 2 0 8
United States 1996 2 0 0 2 0 7
United States 1998 2 0 0 2 2 11
United States 2000 2 0 0 2 0 2
United States 2002 3 0 0 3 2 19
Mexico United States 2003 5 1 0 4 1 11
United States 2005 3 1 0 2 2 9
United States 2007 4 1 0 3 6 14
United States 2009 Group stage 11th 3 0 0 3 0 8 Squad 4 1 2 1 5 6
United States 2011 Did not qualify 4 0 1 3 2 7
United States 2013 3 0 1 2 2 5
Canada United States 2015 3 0 0 3 0 6
United States 2017 Group stage 10th 3 0 0 3 1 7 Squad 7 2 1 4 9 9
Costa Rica Jamaica United States 2019 15th 3 0 0 3 0 8 Squad 4 3 0 1 9 2
United States 2021 Did not qualify 6 2 1 3 9 11
Canada United States 2023 Disqualified[6] 6 4 2 0 15 5
Total Sixth place 5/27 18 0 1 17 6 50 68 17 8 43 74 149

CONCACAF Nations League

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CONCACAF Nations League record
League Finals
Season Division Group Pld W D L GF GA P/R Year Result Pld W D L GF GA Squad
2019–20 B D 6 2 1 3 9 11 Same position United States 2021 Ineligible
2022–23 B C 6 4 2 0 15 5 Same position United States 2023
2023–24 B B 6 5 1 0 17 1 Rise United States 2024
2024–25 A B 4 2 1 1 5 5 Same position United States 2025 Did not qualify
Total 22 13 5 4 46 22 Total 0 Titles

Copa Centroamericana

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Copa Centroamericana record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Costa Rica 1991 Preliminary round 5th 2 0 0 2 2 5
Honduras 1993 Preliminary round 5th 2 0 0 2 0 8
El Salvador 1995 Preliminary round 7th 2 0 0 2 0 7
Guatemala 1997 First round 6th 2 0 0 2 2 11
Costa Rica 1999 First round 5th 2 0 0 2 0 2
Honduras 2001 First round 7th 3 0 0 3 2 19
Panama 2003 Sixth place 6th 5 1 0 4 1 11
Guatemala 2005 Fifth place 5th 3 1 0 2 2 9
El Salvador 2007 Sixth place 6th 4 1 0 3 6 14
Honduras 2009 Fifth place 5th 4 1 2 1 5 6
Panama 2011 Sixth place 6th 4 0 1 3 2 7
Costa Rica 2013 Seventh place 7th 3 0 1 2 2 5
United States 2014 Sixth place 6th 3 0 0 3 0 6
Panama 2017 Fifth place 5th 5 1 1 3 5 6
Total Fifth place 14/14 44 5 5 34 29 116

CCCF Championship

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CCCF Championship record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Costa Rica 1941 Fifth place 5th 4 0 0 4 5 29
El Salvador 1943 Fourth place 4th 6 0 0 6 7 39
Costa Rica 1946 Sixth place 6th 5 1 0 4 5 31
Guatemala 1948 Did not enter
Panama 1951 Third place 3rd 4 0 0 4 4 22
Costa Rica 1953 Sixth place 6th 6 1 0 5 4 18
Honduras 1955 Did not enter
Netherlands Antilles 1957
Cuba 1960
Costa Rica 1961 Ninth place 9th 3 0 0 3 3 18
Total Third place 6/10 28 2 0 26 28 157

Pan American Games

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Pan American Games record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Argentina 1951 Did not enter
Mexico 1955
United States 1959
Brazil 1963
Canada 1967
Colombia 1971
Mexico 1975 Preliminary round 13th 3 0 0 3 2 23
Puerto Rico 1979 Did not enter
Venezuela 1983
United States 1987
Cuba 1991 Preliminary round 8th 3 0 0 3 1 20
Argentina 1995 Did not qualify
Canada 1999
Dominican Republic 2003
Brazil 2007
Mexico 2011
Canada 2015
Peru 2019
Chile 2023
Total Preliminary round 2/19 6 0 0 6 3 43

Central American and Caribbean Games

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Central American and Caribbean Games record
Year Round Position Pld W D L GF GA
Cuba 1930 Did not qualify
El Salvador 1935
Panama 1938
Colombia 1946
Guatemala 1950 Group stage 8th 3 0 0 3 4 19
Mexico 1954 Did not qualify
Venezuela 1959
Jamaica 1962
Puerto Rico 1966
Panama 1970
Dominican Republic 1974
Colombia 1978
Cuba 1982 Group stage 7th 3 0 1 2 2 6
Dominican Republic 1986 Did not qualify
Mexico 1990
Puerto Rico 1993
Venezuela 1998 Quarter-finals 8th 4 1 0 3 3 13
El Salvador 2002 Quarter-finals 8th 3 1 0 2 2 7
Colombia 2006 Did not qualify
Puerto Rico 2010
Mexico 2014
Colombia 2018
Total Quarter-finals 4/22 13 2 1 10 11 45

Honours

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Regional

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Head-to-head record

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As of 14 October 2024 after the match against  French Guiana.[9]

  Positive Record   Neutral Record   Negative Record

  1. ^ Includes matches against  Netherlands Antilles.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. 28 November 2024. Retrieved 28 November 2024.
  2. ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 8 December 2024. Retrieved 8 December 2024.
  3. ^ "Nicaragua shocks Guatemala 2–0 to claim last berth in CONCACAF Gold Cup". CONCACAF. 29 January 2009. Archived from the original on 2 February 2009. Retrieved 29 January 2009.
  4. ^ "Nicaragua - List of International Matches". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 24 February 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  5. ^ "Bermuda downs Nicaragua to earn first ever Gold Cup victory". New Jersey: Gold Cup. 24 June 2019. Archived from the original on 6 March 2021. Retrieved 9 August 2019.
  6. ^ a b "Concacaf Disciplinary Committee decision regarding Nicaragua and the Eligibility of Players" (Press release). CONCACAF. 12 June 2023. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
  7. ^ @laazulyblanco (3 October 2024). "𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗩𝗢𝗖𝗔𝗧𝗢𝗥𝗜𝗔 𝗢𝗙𝗜𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗟" – via Instagram.
  8. ^ Passo Alpuin, Luis Fernando. "Nicaragua – Record International Players". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 5 April 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  9. ^ "World Football Elo Ratings".
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