The Central American Zone men's youth and junior tournaments of the IHF Trophy South and Central America started with four matches played on Tuesday, 16 April, in Managua. 

At the preliminary stage, the teams at both age categories are divided into two groups. In group A of the youth (U18) tournament, Guatemala had the upper hand against El Salvador, 33:14, while home side Nicaragua defeated Costa Rica by even a bigger margin, 45:23.

On Wednesday, Panama will play their first match at the event in Group A, against Guatemala at 14:00 (local time). In Group B, Honduras are entering the race, as they will face Nicaragua at 18:00.

At the junior (U20) competition, Nicaragua snatched a hard-fought win in Group A against Costa Rica, 29:28, while in Group B, Guatemala had an advantage against Honduras, 35:24.

On day two, El Salvador play their first match at the tournament, at 20:00 against Nicaragua in Group A. And on the same day in Group B, Panama also debut at the event, facing Honduras at 16:00.