Central American Cup week four begins with three matches

Week four of the 2026 Concacaf Central American Cup begins on 18 August. Three group-stage matches open the programme in Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Guatemala. The competition contains twenty clubs divided into four groups of five.

Cartagines host Verdes before Real Esteli face Herediano and Xelaju meet Diriangen. The listed times use Eastern Time, with local times shown separately by the organisers. The remaining five matches follow on 19 and 20 August.

Cartagines and Verdes open the Tuesday schedule

Cartagines host Verdes at the Fello Meza stadium in Cartago. The match starts at 21:00 Eastern Time and 19:00 locally. Both clubs compete in Group D during the five-week group stage. Group D also contains CSD Municipal, Motagua and FAS. Each result affects a compact table because clubs play only four group matches. There is little time to recover from dropped points inside that schedule.

Verdes represent Belize, while Cartagines come from Costa Rica. The match adds another cross-border trip to the regional competition. Travel and recovery form part of every club’s preparation during consecutive weeks. The official schedule identifies the venue and starting time without predicting the result. Clubs publish their lineups shortly before the match. The standings after the match show each club’s exact group position.

Real Esteli host Herediano in Group B

Real Esteli meet Herediano at Estadio Independencia in Nicaragua. The game starts at 23:00 Eastern Time and 21:00 locally. Both teams belong to Group B with Antigua, CD Marathón and Alianza of El Salvador. Real Esteli have home support for an important fourth-week fixture.

Herediano bring experience from Costa Rican and regional competition. Those factors provide context without deciding how the match will finish.

Group B’s other week-four match takes place on 19 August. CD Marathón play at home against Alianza at 21:00 Eastern Time. Antigua do not play during this particular round of fixtures. Every group contains five teams, so one club rests during each week. That format produces unequal match totals until the final week ends. Current standings make sense only beside the number of games played.

Xelaju and Diriangen complete the opening night

Xelaju host Diriangen at Estadio Cementos Progreso in Guatemala City. Their match also starts at 23:00 Eastern Time. The clubs compete in Group A alongside Alajuelense, Plaza Amador and Luis Angel Firpo. Group A continues on 20 August when Firpo host Alajuelense. Plaza Amador sit out week four. The staggered programme gives supporters one group match on Tuesday and another on Thursday.

Xelaju and Diriangen reach this fixture after three completed competition weeks. Their previous results shape the table, but the Tuesday match has its own available points. A win provides three, while a draw gives each club one. The competition uses normal group standings before the knockout rounds. Goal difference and other stated rules separate teams when points are equal. Those calculations become final only after all group matches are complete.

Five more fixtures follow during the week

Wednesday contains three matches across Groups B, C and D. Mixco face UMECIT, CD Marathón meet Alianza, and FAS host CSD Municipal. The starting times are 21:00, 21:00 and 23:00 Eastern Time. Thursday completes week four with two games. Alianza of Panama host Olimpia at 21:00 Eastern Time. Firpo then face Alajuelense at 23:00 Eastern Time in San Salvador.

These matches form part of a group stage running from late July through late August. Week five follows from 25 to 27 August. The quarter-finals begin during September after the final group standings are known. A clear schedule separates confirmed fixtures from possible later pairings. Quarter-final opponents depend on completed group positions. Final knockout opponents remain unknown until those positions are settled.

Six clubs will reach the 2027 Champions Cup

The Central American Cup also qualifies clubs for the 2027 Concacaf Champions Cup. All four semifinalists receive places in that competition. The two clubs that win the qualification ties also advance. The Central American champion receives an additional advantage. That club enters the Champions Cup in the round of sixteen. The other qualified teams begin at the earlier stage defined by the competition rules.

Quarter-finals take place over two legs in September. Semifinals and play-in ties follow during October. The final is scheduled for 2 and 6 December, also using two matches. Week four therefore affects both the regional title and a later continental place. The first three matches begin that process on 18 August. Results across all eight fixtures will shape the final group week.