Nicaragua vs Costa Rica Preview & Prediction | 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifying (CONCACAF)
by Alex Lawes ·
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This one does appear to be of the bigger mis-matches in the third round of CONCACAF qualification for the 2026 FIFA World Cup as Nicaragua face Costa Rica this weekend.
Kick-off date/time:
How to watch on TV: UK – Not televised / US – Not televised
How to watch online: UK – Cannot be streamed / US – Fubo
Key stats
- Nicaragua have won six of their last seven World Cup qualifying matches in Nicaragua (L1).
- Nicaragua have kept five clean sheets in their last seven World Cup qualifying matches in Nicaragua (L1).
- Nicaragua have won 11 of their last 14 World Cup qualifying matches (L3). They started the current campaign with three successive wins before a 3-0 defeat against Panama in their most recent game.
- Costa Rica are unbeaten in their last 12 World Cup qualifying matches (W11 D1). They have won nine in a row which is their best sequence of successive wins in World Cup qualifying history.
- Costa Rica have conceded only two goals in their last 11 World Cup qualifying matches.
Nicaragua vs Costa Rica prediction
Ranked 130th in the world and without a permanent manager, Nicaragua will be expected to finish bottom of a group that consists of Costa Rica, Haiti and Honduras. The Nicaraguense managed to finish above Guyana, Montserrat and Belize in the second round, but were comfortably below Panama.
They now face a Costa Rica side that, under the management of Miguel Herrera, former Mexico boss, have a squad that is needing new blood to come through with the experience and pedigree of the mid-2010s side now moving on. They do have some intriguing talents, such as Jeyland Mitchell, Brandon Aguilera and Manfred Ugalde.
Costa Rica will head across to Nicaragua as firm favourites to get off to a winning start, and siding with the Costa Ricans is the way to go for this one this weekend.
Nicaragua vs Costa Rica tip: Costa Rica to win
