The Nicaraguan national soccer team’s loss to Costa Rica on October 1 in the Nations League highlighted three things: that the team lacks the caliber to compete in League A (we suffered heavy defeats against the Dominican Republic and Curaçao); that there is no generational transition for future campaigns; and last but not least, that control of the “Blue and White” has been taken over almost entirely by Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo’ regime.
At least three sources consulted by DIVERGENTES with extensive knowledge of the subject confirmed to this media outlet that, for the past five months, Juventud Presidente (JP)—an official propaganda arm run by the Sandinista regime—has taken over communications and organization for the senior and youth soccer teams, both men’s and women’s.
“It was an order that came from the top. The goal is to have control over everything and centralize it under their political line. Juventud Presidente is doing this with other government institutions. And when it comes to sports, the national team was the one that was not yet under that same directive,” explained a source linked to the Nicaraguan Institute of Sports (or IND, its initials in Spanish), speaking on condition of anonymity.
Following the Men’s National Team’s successful run in the United 2026 qualifiers—in which Nicaragua advanced to the final stage and was eliminated despite defeating Honduras and tying Costa Rica in Managua—the Sandinista regime decided to take control of the communication and organization of all events related to the “Blue and White.” However, it did not do so through the party or a superminister, but rather under the auspices of JP, although without making it fully official.
“Officials from the Nicaraguan Soccer Federation (or Fenifut, its acronym in Spanish) and people from the First Division who had access to social media were informed that control would be assumed by JP. Little by little, they abandoned their usual communication and outreach duties, and five months later, control was almost entirely consolidated. The match against Costa Rica was the first to be organized by their people—political operatives—under rules of ‘strict order’ and secrecy,” stated a former Fenifut official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity due to the police state imposed by the dictatorship.
The Origin of the “Takeover”
The Sandinista regime has always sought to maintain control over sports in the country. Sports federations are run by figures widely identified as Sandinistas. However, sports such as taekwondo, basketball, handball, and wrestling have lacked popularity among Nicaraguans. In short, the media impact the dictatorship could have through these sports was minimal.
“They aimed high. First with boxing champions like Román González. Then they got involved in baseball and backed Pomares. After that, they poured money into boxing. But after the 2018 political crisis, the media impact of these sports collapsed. Only soccer and the national team’s activities maintained high levels of interest organically. But there was one barrier holding them back: FIFA’s ban on government interference in soccer federations,” explained the source linked to the IND, who noted that out of the country’s “major” sports, the only one left to control was soccer at the national team level.
According to its statutes, FIFA is a politically and religiously neutral organization. Articles 14 and 15 of its regulations state that all member associations are required to manage their affairs independently and ensure that there is no interference by third parties in their internal affairs.
The regulations of all federations must be neutral, independent, and free from political interference, guaranteeing complete autonomy, particularly within their judicial bodies. The provision prohibiting any political interference is set forth in Article 19, which also states that a violation could result in the suspension or even expulsion of the member federation from FIFA.
“This is the safeguard to prevent governments from interfering with the federations. Any attempt results in sanctions, as happened with Nigeria and Sri Lanka. Here, the first step taken was the imposition of the red-and-black flag during a flag-raising ceremony for a women’s U-20 national team. The red-and-black flag is a political symbol. A warning from FIFA was expected, but in the end, nothing happened,” recalled the source linked to the IND.
Due to the lack of reprimands, plans to take control of the national teams continued on as expected. A former executive of a First Division team explained that the Sandinista regime decided to push forward aggressively despite already having, to some extent, control over national soccer, because the centralization of all organizations in the country is of the utmost importance to the dictatorship.
“Fidel Moreno controls the First Division. That’s an open secret. And he also exerts influence over Fenifut. The point here is that he wasn’t interested in taking center stage or getting involved in communications and organization. He does have the final say in appointing or firing coaches, although he always does so with ‘advice.’ Until now, there had been no problems with partisan loyalties. In fact, those at Fenifut are Sandinista operatives who answer to the party, but those at the top decided to move toward almost total control,” stated the former executive.
On the Day of the Match Against Costa Rica
The organization and communication before, during, and after the match against Costa Rica were handled entirely by JP, as confirmed by the three sources interviewed by DIVERGENTES for this article. Control of entry and exit was coordinated by employees of the Mayor’s Office and other government agencies. Police surveillance was even stepped up not only on the field but also in the stands.
Some attendees confirmed, through videos and photographs sent to this media outlet, the presence of two of Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo’s sons at the game. Daniel Edmundo and Maurice Ortega Murillo attended with their children amid a large police presence of at least 20 men and women, including both plainclothes and uniformed officers.
“The increased security was exclusively for the co-presidents’ children,” explained a source linked to the Ministry of the Interior. “They didn’t do this before, but since control is almost total, there is ‘more confidence’ to allow them to participate in this type of activity,” the source continued.
The issue of total control is not absolute, but rather “almost” so, because Fenifut executives still serve as the public face at press conferences; however, behind the scenes—in terms of organization and communication—JP is the one who determines what actions will be taken and how they will be carried out in day-to-day operations.
“Communication passes through several filters, and nothing gets done without the approval of up to five people. Those in charge know nothing about soccer or how the sport is organized. They’re very secretive with information and have created an atmosphere of fear even among journalists themselves,” said the source linked to Fenifut.
DIVERGENTES reached out to sports journalists to hear their views on this atmosphere of fear that may exist in light of the new control over the national team; however, we did not receive a response from the professionals we contacted.
The source linked to the IND noted that although the regime assumed control of the national team through JP, it is unlikely to make this official through its propaganda channels due to the threat of sanctions stemming from its interference with Fenifut.
“If FIFA were to conduct an investigation, what it would find in national soccer would be rotten. Fidel Moreno is behind the First Division, and now the Sandinista regime has co-opted the national team to take advantage of its massive following. The last bastion of ‘independence’ in sports that existed has now disappeared,” the source concluded.