Summary
Primera División de Nicaragua (NCA1) is the top level of league style football competition in Nicaragua. The 2020-2021 NCA1 season is split into two championships, the Torneo Apertura and the Torneo Clausura. At the end of the 2020-2021 Torneo Clausura, the NCA1 teams listed below qualify for the following non-league play:
- 2021 CONCACAF League Round of 16 (or Preliminary Round):
- 2020-2021 Torneo Apertura/Clausura champions
If the same team wins both the Torneo Apertura and Torneo Clausura, then the 2nd place team from each torneo with the most 2020-2021 NCA1 Aggregate Table points receives the 2nd CONCACAF League berth.
Aggregate points are determined by combining results from the 2020-2021 Torneo Apertura and 2020-2021 Torneo Clausura into the 2020-2021 NCA1 Aggregate Table.
Leagues Pyramid - Nicaragua
| Abbrev | League | # of Teams |
|---|---|---|
| NCA1 | Liga Primera | 10 |
| NCA2 | Segunda División de Nicaragua | 20 |
| NCA3 | Tercera División de Nicaragua | 40 |
| NCA3 | Tercera División de Nicaragua | - |
| NCA4 | Cuarta División de Nicaragua | - |
Competition Structure
Season | # of Teams | ||
| Apertura - Regular 1 Aug 2020 - 19 Nov 2020 Apertura - Playoffs 22 Nov 2020 - 19 Dec 2020 | Clausura - Regular 25 Jan 2021 - 18 Apr 2021 Clausura - Playoffs 21 Apr 2021 - 9 May 2021 | 10: NCA1 (8 minimum), NCA2 (2 maximum) | |
Season Format
The 2020-2021 NCA1 season is split into two championships, the Torneo Apertura and the Torneo Clausura. In each torneo, each NCA1 team plays Home-Away matches with the other 9 NCA1 teams for a total of 18 league matches. A playoff is held upon the completion of each torneo to determine the torneo champion. Table ranking ties are broken by (1) goal difference, then (2) goals scored.
Playoffs
At the end of each torneo, the top 6 eligible NCA1 teams participate in playoffs. In the Preliminary Round. 3rd plays 6th and 4th plays 5th in a "Knockout" matches. The Preliminary Round winners advance to a Home-Away highest aggregate goal wins Semifinals. The Semifinals winners advance to a Home-Away highest aggregate goal wins Final.
Relegation
Immediately following the 2020-2021 Torneo Clausura, the 10th place team in the 2020-2021 NCA1 Aggregate Table is immediately relegated to NCA2, while the 9th place team enters into a Promotion/Relegation playoff with the 2nd place NCA2 team. The playoff winner plays in the 2020-2021 NCA1 and the loser plays in the NCA2.
More Info...
Apertura - Finals
| Date | Home | Status | Road | Venue | ||||
| Aggregate | Diriangén FC () | 01 | Real Estelí FC () |
| 13.12.20 |  | 00 | Real Estelí FC | Estadio Cacique Diriangén |
| 20.12.20 | | 10 | Diriangén FC | Estadio Nacional de Fútbol |
Apertura - Semifinals
| Date | Home | Status | Road | Venue | ||||
| Aggregate | Diriangén FC () | 63 | CD Walter Ferretti () |
| 28.11.20 | | 32 | CD Walter Ferretti | Estadio Cacique Diriangén |
| 06.12.20 | | 13 | Diriangén FC | Estadio Nacional de Fútbol |
| Aggregate | Chinandega FC () | 23 | Real Estelí FC () |
| 29.11.20 |  | 22 | Real Estelí FC | Estadio La Veranera |
| 06.12.20 | | 10 | Chinandega FC | Estadio Nacional de Fútbol |
Apertura - Preliminary Playoff
| Date | Home | Status | Road | Venue | ||||
 | 02 | Chinandega FC | Estadio Alejandro Ramos |
| 20 | Juventus FC | Estadio Cacique Diriangén |
Torneo Apertura
| League | Home | Road | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POS | MP | W - D - L | PTS | CPTS | GF | GA | GD | MP | W - D - L | PTS | GF | GA | GD | MP | W - D - L | PTS | GF | GA | GD | |
| 1 | Real Estelí FC | 18 | 11 -5-2 | 38 | - | 32 | 13 | 19 | 9 | 7 -2-0 | 23 | 16 | 4 | 12 | 9 | 4 -3-2 | 15 | 16 | 9 | 7 |
| 2 | CD Walter Ferretti | 18 | 9 -5-4 | 32 | - | 29 | 17 | 12 | 9 | 5 -2-2 | 17 | 14 | 5 | 9 | 9 | 4 -3-2 | 15 | 15 | 12 | 3 |
| 3 | ART Municipal Jalapa | 18 | 8 -6-4 | 30 | - | 20 | 15 | 5 | 9 | 8 -1-0 | 25 | 14 | 2 | 12 | 9 | 0 -5-4 | 5 | 6 | 13 | -7 |
| 4 | Diriangén FC | 18 | 8 -5-5 | 29 | - | 29 | 21 | 8 | 9 | 5 -3-1 | 18 | 18 | 8 | 10 | 9 | 3 -2-4 | 11 | 11 | 13 | -2 |
| 5 | Juventus FC | 18 | 6 -5-7 | 23 | - | 23 | 25 | -2 | 9 | 4 -2-3 | 14 | 17 | 15 | 2 | 9 | 2 -3-4 | 9 | 6 | 10 | -4 |
| 6 | Chinandega FC | 18 | 5 -6-7 | 21 | - | 21 | 35 | -14 | 9 | 2 -5-2 | 11 | 15 | 18 | -3 | 9 | 3 -1-5 | 10 | 6 | 17 | -11 |
| 7 | CD Ocotal | 18 | 5 -4-9 | 19 | - | 20 | 25 | -5 | 9 | 4 -3-2 | 15 | 13 | 5 | 8 | 9 | 1 -1-7 | 4 | 7 | 20 | -13 |
| 8 | Managua FC | 18 | 5 -4-9 | 19 | - | 24 | 30 | -6 | 9 | 3 -1-5 | 10 | 15 | 15 | 0 | 9 | 2 -3-4 | 9 | 9 | 15 | -6 |
| 9 | Real Madriz FC | 18 | 3 -7-8 | 16 | - | 17 | 24 | -7 | 9 | 2 -4-3 | 10 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 1 -3-5 | 6 | 8 | 15 | -7 |
| 10 | CD Junior Managua | 18 | 2 -9-7 | 15 | - | 16 | 26 | -10 | 9 | 2 -5-2 | 11 | 8 | 11 | -3 | 9 | 0 -4-5 | 4 | 8 | 15 | -7 |
Apertura - Quadrangular | ||||||||||||||||||||
Results
| 21 | Real Madriz FC | Estadio Alejandro Ramos |
| 40 | Chinandega FC | Complejo Deportivo De Fútbol Arnoldo y Matty Chávez |
 | 11 | Juventus FC | Estadio Nacional de Fútbol |
| 61 | CD Ocotal | Estadio Cacique Diriangén |
| 10 | Managua FC | Estadio Roy Fernando Bermúdez |
| 34 | Diriangén FC | Estadio Nacional de Fútbol |
| 11 | CD Junior Managua | Estadio Nacional de Fútbol |
| 11 | ART Municipal Jalapa | Estadio La Veranera |
| 20 | CD Walter Ferretti | Estadio Roy Fernando Bermúdez |
| 11 | Juventus FC | Estadio Solidaridad Augusto Cesar Mendoza |
| 20 | CD Ocotal | Estadio Alejandro Ramos |
| 00 | Managua FC | Estadio La Veranera |
| 22 | Real Estelí FC | Estadio Cacique Diriangén |
| 42 | Managua FC | Estadio Nacional de Fútbol |
| 22 | Real Madriz FC | Estadio Nacional de Fútbol |
| 51 | Chinandega FC | Complejo Deportivo De Fútbol Arnoldo y Matty Chávez |
| 00 | Juventus FC | Estadio Roy Fernando Bermúdez |
| 11 | Real Madriz FC | Estadio La Veranera |
| 11 | CD Walter Ferretti | Estadio Nacional de Fútbol |
| 32 | CD Junior Managua | Estadio Cacique Diriangén |