2025 Concacaf Central American Cup: All You Need to Know | OneFootball

MIAMI – The 2025 Concacaf Central American Cup kicks off on July 29, as the 20 best clubs play to be crowned champions in early December.

The tournament will also determine six spots in the 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup, with the champion receiving a bye to the Round of 16. Costa Rican side LD Alajuelense is the defending champion and has won the past two editions.

Here is everything you need to know about the 2025 Concacaf Central American Cup.

What

The 2025 Concacaf Central American Cup is the latest edition of Concacaf’s Central American club competition and will involve 20 teams.

The participating clubs are as follows (sorted by country):

·      Verdes FC (Belize)

·      LD Alajuelense (Costa Rica)

·      CS Cartaginés (Costa Rica)

·      CS Herediano (Costa Rica)

·      Deportivo Saprissa (Costa Rica)

·      CD Águila (El Salvador)

·      Alianza FC (El Salvador)

·      CD Herculés (El Salvador)

·      Antigua GFC (Guatemala)

·      CSD Municipal (Guatemala)

·      Club Xelajú M.C. (Guatemala)

·      Motagua FC (Honduras)

·      CD Olimpia (Honduras)

·      Real CD España (Honduras)

·      Diriangén FC (Nicaragua)

·      Managua FC (Nicaragua)

·      Real Estelí FC (Nicaragua)

·      CA Independiente (Panama)

·      CD Plaza Amador (Panama)

·      Sporting San Miguelito (Panama)

When

The 2025 Concacaf Central American Cup will begin with the Group Stage on July 29 and culminate with the second leg of the finals in December. Here are the dates by phase:

·      Group Stage: July 29 to August 28

·      Quarterfinals: September 23–25 and September 30 – October 2

·      Semifinals & Play-In: October 21–23 and October 28–30

·      Final: November 25–27 and December 2–4

The competition’s complete match schedule is available HERE.

Format

For the Group Stage, teams have been split into four groups of five, as determined by the Official Draw on June 3. Each of the 20 participating clubs will play four matches in the Group Stage, two at home and two away, across five scheduled match weeks:

The following are the groups for the 2025 Concacaf Central American Cup group stage:

Group A

LD Alajuelense

Antigua GFC

CD Plaza Amador

Alianza FC

Managua FC

Group B

CS Herediano

CSD Municipal

Real CD España

Sporting San Miguelito

Diriangén FC

Group C

Deportivo Saprissa

FC Motagua

CS Cartaginés

CA Independiente

Verdes FC

Group D

CD Olimpia

Club Xelajú M.C

Real Estelí FC

CD Águila

CD Hércules

Following the Group Stage, the top two clubs from each group will advance to the Knockout Stage, which will feature home-and-away ties, beginning with the Quarterfinals, followed by the Semifinals, Play-In matches, and the Final, where a champion will be crowned.

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 Estelí 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.

Alajuelense successfully defended its crown in the 2024 edition in a repeat Final against Real Estelí, winning 3-2 on aggregate. Semifinalists Antigua (Guatemala) and Herediano (Costa Rica), as well as Play-In winners Motagua (Honduras) and Saprissa (Costa Rica), earned the remaining berths in the 2025 CCC.

Champions

·      LD Alajuelense (Costa Rica): 2023, 2024

Qualification for the 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup

The four clubs that reach the semifinals will automatically qualify for the 2026 Concacaf Champions Cup. The remaining two spots will be contested in the Play-In between the four eliminated teams in the quarterfinals. The Central American Cup champion will receive a bye to the Round of 16.