# 2017 Copa Centroamericana

The 2017 Copa Centroamericana (English: 2017 Central American Cup) was the 14th and last edition of the Copa Centroamericana, the biennial international men's football championship of the Central American region organized by the Central American Football Union (UNCAF). The tournament was hosted in Panama between 13–22 January 2017.
The top four teams qualified for the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup, while the fifth-placed team advanced to a play-off against the fifth-placed team from the 2017 Caribbean Cup for the final Gold Cup berth.
The tournament was played in round-robin format as a result of Guatemala not being able to participate due to FIFA's suspension of the National Football Federation of Guatemala.

## Entrants

Six of the seven UNCAF members were eligible to participate in the tournament.
| Team | UNCAF Nations Cup / Copa Centroamericana appearances | Previous best performance | FIFA ranking at start of event |
| Belize | 11th | 4th place (2013) | 163 |
| Costa Rica | 14th | Champions (1991, 1997, 1999, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2013, 2014) | 17 |
| El Salvador | 14th | 3rd place (1995, 1997, 2001, 2003, 2013) | 138 |
| Honduras | 14th | Champions (1993, 1995, 2011) | 75 |
| Nicaragua | 14th | 5th place (2009) | 111 |
| Panama (Hosts) | 13th | Champions (2009) | 58 |
On 28 October 2016, FIFA suspended the National Football Federation of Guatemala for political interference by the Government of Guatemala. Until the suspension is lifted, Guatemalan teams are not permitted to participate in international competitions. CONCACAF had set the deadline of 9 December 2016 for the suspension to be lifted, otherwise by rule, Guatemala would be disqualified from the 2017 Copa Centroamericana, and any revision to the tournament format would be discussed once the deadline had passed. The suspension was not lifted before the deadline, so Guatemala could not participate in the competition.

## Venue

All matches were played at Estadio Rommel Fernández in Panama City.
| Panama City | Panama City |
| Panama City | Estadio Rommel Fernández |
| Panama City | Capacity: 32,000 |

## Original draw

The original format of the competition was to be a group stage (one group of four teams and one group of three teams) followed by a knockout stage (fifth-placed match, semi-finals, third-placed match and final). The draw for the competition with the original format took place on 25 October 2016, 18:00 UTC−5, at the Hotel Sortis in Panama City, Panama.
| Pot | Team |
| Hosts (A1) | Panama |
| Title holders (B1) | Costa Rica |
| Pot 1 (A3 or A4) |
| Pot 1 (A3 or A4) | Belize |
| Pot 1 (A3 or A4) | Nicaragua |
| Pot 2 (A2, B2 or B3) | El Salvador |
| Pot 2 (A2, B2 or B3) | Guatemala |
| Pot 2 (A2, B2 or B3) | Honduras |
The original draw results were:
A change in format was announced on 10 December 2016 following FIFA's decision not to lift the suspension of the National Football Federation of Guatemala.

## Squads

Each team squad had to have a minimum of 18 players and a maximum of 23 players, two of whom must be goalkeepers.

## Standings

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Honduras (C) | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 3 | +4 | 13 | Qualification to 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| 2 | Panama (H) | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 10 | Qualification to 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| 3 | El Salvador | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 7 | Qualification to 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| 4 | Costa Rica | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 6 | Qualification to 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup |
| 5 | Nicaragua | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 6 | −1 | 4 | Advance to 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup CFU–UNCAF play-off |
| 6 | Belize | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 10 | −8 | 1 | |

## Matches

All times are EST (UTC−5).

### Matchday 5
## Goalscorers
### 3 goals

* Eddie Hernández

### 2 goals

* José Guillermo Ortiz
* Erick Andino
* Rubilio Castillo
* Bryan García

### 1 goal

* Deon McCaulay
* Elroy Smith
* Francisco Calvo
* Johan Venegas
* Juan Barahona
* Irvin Herrera
* Gerson Mayén
* Henry Romero
* Rodolfo Zelaya
* Juan Barrera
* Daniel Cadena
* Abdiel Arroyo
* Armando Cooper
* Roderick Miller
* Josiel Núñez

### Own goals

* Henry Figueroa (playing against Nicaragua)

## Awards

The following awards were given at the conclusion of the tournament:
* Golden Ball: Jorge Claros
* Golden Boot: Eddie Hernández (3 goals)
* Golden Glove: José Calderón
* Young player award: Roberto Domínguez
* Fair play award: Jhonny Acosta
* Best XI:
** Goalkeeper: José Calderón
** Left Defender: Alexander Larín
** Central Defender: Harold Cummings
** Central Defender: Francisco Calvo
** Right Defender: Jairo Puerto
** Left Midfielder: Óscar Cerén
** Central Midfielder: Darwin Cerén
** Central Midfielder: Jorge Claros
** Central Midfielder: Armando Cooper
** Left Midfielder: Erick Andino
** Forward: Eddie Hernández

## Qualified teams for 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup

The following five teams qualified for the 2017 CONCACAF Gold Cup.
| Team | Qualified on | Previous Gold Cup qualifications |
| Honduras | 17 January 2017 | 12 (1991, 1993, 1996, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015) |
| Panama | 20 January 2017 | 7 (1993, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015) |
| El Salvador | 22 January 2017 | 9 (1996, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015) |
| Costa Rica | 20 January 2017 | 12 (1991, 1993, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015) |
| Nicaragua (won play-off over Haiti) | 28 March 2017 | 1 (2009) |