Concacaf
·25 July 2024
2024 Concacaf Central American Cup: All You Need to Know
![Article image:2024 Concacaf Central American Cup: All You Need to Know](https://image-service.onefootball.com/transform?w=280&h=210&dpr=2&image=https%3A%2F%2Fstconcacafwp001.blob.core.windows.net%2Fmedia%2Fj30ocjeq%2Fcac2-allyouneedtoknow.jpg)
In partnership with
Yahoo sportsConcacaf
·25 July 2024
MIAMI — The 2024 Concacaf Central American Cup kicks off on July 30, as the 20 best clubs play to be crowned champions in early December.
The tournament will also determine six spots in the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup. Costa Rican side LD Alajuelense are the defending champions.
Here is everything you need to know about the 2024 Concacaf Central American Cup.
What
The 2024 Concacaf Central American Cup is the latest edition of Concacaf’s Central American club competition and will involve 20 teams.
The participating nations are as follows:
For more information on how each club qualified, click HERE.
When
The 2024 Concacaf Central American Cup will begin with the group stage on July 30 and culminate with the second leg of the finals in December. Here are the dates by phase:
The competition’s complete match schedule is available HERE.
History
In September 2021, Concacaf announced that from 2023 onwards, three regional cup competitions (Leagues Cup, Central American Cup, and Caribbean Cup) will be played in the fall of each year. These competitions will determine certain qualification spots for the Concacaf Champions Cup.For Central America, the Confederation introduced a 20-club tournament with a group stage, followed by a direct elimination knockout stage.
LD Alajuelense of Costa Rica won the inaugural edition, 4-1 on aggregate, over Real Esteli of Nicaragua. Semifinalists Independiente (Panama) and Herediano (Costa Rica), as well as Play-In winners Comunicaciones (Guatemala) and Saprissa (Costa Rica), earned the remaining berths in the 2024 CCC.
Champions
Format
For the Group Stage, teams have been split into four groups of five, as determined by a draw on June 6. Each team will play home and away at every group opponent, with the top two moving on to the knockout stage.
The following are the groups for the 2024 Concacaf Central American Cup group stage:
Group A
CS Herediano
FC Motagua
Tauro FC
San Francisco FC
Diriangen FC
Group B
LD Alajuelense
Comunicaciones FC
CD Marathon
Alianza FC
CD Luis Angel Firpo
Group C
CD Olimpia
Antigua GFC
CA Independiente
CD Aguila
Port Layola FC
Group D
Deportivo Saprissa
CSD Municipal
AD Guanacasteca
Real Esteli FC
Managua FC
The group winners and runners-up will be ranked 1-4 and 5-8, respectively. The highest-ranked group winner will play the lowest-ranked runner-up (1vs8, 2vs7, 3vs6, and 4vs5), and the four highest-ranked clubs will host the second-leg matches.
For the Semifinals and Play-In matches, matchups will be determined based on the competition’s bracket. The highest-ranked club in each matchup, according to the competition's table, will host the second-leg matches.
Qualification for the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup
The four clubs that reach the semifinals will automatically qualify for the 2025 Concacaf Champions Cup. The remaining two spots will be contested between the four eliminated teams in the quarterfinals.