2026 Primera Nacional

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Primera Nacional
Season2026
Dates13 February – November 2026
Matches323
Goals601 (1.86 per match)
Top goalscorerThree players (7 goals each)
Biggest home winGimnasia y Esgrima (J) 6–1 Almagro
(19 April)
Biggest away winTemperley 0–5 Dep. Maipú
(9 May)
Highest scoringGimnasia y Esgrima (J) 6–1 Almagro
(19 April)
← 2025
2027 →
All statistics correct as of 23 June 2026.

The 2026 Argentine Primera Nacional, officially known as the Campeonato de Primera Nacional Sur Finanzas 2026 for sponsorship purposes,[1] is the 42nd season of the Primera Nacional, the second-tier competition of Argentine football. Thirty-six teams compete in the league, thirty of which took part in the 2025 season, along with two teams relegated from Liga Profesional, two teams promoted from Torneo Federal A and two teams promoted from Primera B Metropolitana. The fixture draw was held on 22 December 2025,[1] and the season began on 13 February and is scheduled to end in December 2026.[2]

Format

For this season, the competition is played under the same format as the previous season, with the thirty-six participating teams split into two zones of 18 teams, where they will play against the other teams in their group twice: once at home and once away. However, interzonal matches between rival teams will also be played as rival sides were paired together for the season draw and drawn into different zones. Both zone winners will play a final match on neutral ground to decide the first promoted team to the top flight for the following season, while the teams placing from second to eighth place in each zone will play a knockout tournament (Torneo Reducido) for the second promotion berth along with the loser of the final between the zone winners. The bottom two teams from each zone will be relegated to the third-tier leagues, Primera B Metropolitana or Torneo Federal A.[3]

Similar to previous seasons, fifteen Primera Nacional teams will qualify for the following year's Copa Argentina through league performance, those being the top seven teams of each zone plus the best eighth-placed one.

Club information

Stadia and locations

Club City Province Stadium Capacity
Acassuso Boulogne Sur Mer Buenos Aires La Quema 1,500
Agropecuario Argentino Carlos Casares Buenos Aires Ofelia Rosenzuaig 8,000
All Boys Buenos Aires Capital Federal Islas Malvinas 12,199
Almagro José Ingenieros Buenos Aires Tres de Febrero 12,500
Almirante Brown Isidro Casanova Buenos Aires Fragata Presidente Sarmiento 25,000
Atlanta Buenos Aires Capital Federal Don León Kolbowski 14,000
Atlético de Rafaela Rafaela Santa Fe Nuevo Monumental 16,000
Central Norte Salta Salta Padre Ernesto Martearena 20,408
Chacarita Juniors Villa Maipú Buenos Aires Chacarita Juniors 19,000
Chaco For Ever Resistencia Chaco Juan Alberto García 23,000
Ciudad de Bolívar San Carlos de Bolívar Buenos Aires Municipal Eva Perón 4,000
Colegiales Florida Oeste Buenos Aires Libertarios Unidos 6,500
Colón Santa Fe Santa Fe Brigadier Estanislao López 40,000
Defensores de Belgrano Buenos Aires Capital Federal Juan Pasquale 9,000
Deportivo Madryn Puerto Madryn Chubut Abel Sastre 8,000
Deportivo Maipú Maipú Mendoza Omar Higinio Sperdutti 8,000
Deportivo Morón Morón Buenos Aires Nuevo Francisco Urbano 32,000
Estudiantes Caseros Buenos Aires Ciudad de Caseros 16,740
Ferrocarril Midland Libertad Buenos Aires Ciudad de Libertad 9,000
Ferro Carril Oeste Buenos Aires Capital Federal Ricardo Etcheverri 24,442
Gimnasia y Esgrima Jujuy Jujuy 23 de Agosto 23,200
Gimnasia y Tiro Salta Salta Gigante del Norte 24,300
Godoy Cruz Godoy Cruz Mendoza Feliciano Gambarte 21,000
Güemes Santiago del Estero Santiago del Estero Arturo Miranda 15,000
Los Andes Lomas de Zamora Buenos Aires Eduardo Gallardón 38,000
Mitre Santiago del Estero Santiago del Estero José y Antonio Castiglione 10,500
Nueva Chicago Buenos Aires Capital Federal Nueva Chicago 28,500
Patronato Paraná Entre Ríos Presbítero Bartolomé Grella 22,000
Quilmes Quilmes Buenos Aires Centenario 35,200
Racing Córdoba Córdoba Miguel Sancho 15,000
San Martín San Juan San Juan Ingeniero Hilario Sánchez 26,500
San Martín Tucumán Tucumán La Ciudadela 30,250
San Miguel Los Polvorines Buenos Aires Malvinas Argentinas 7,176
San Telmo Dock Sud Buenos Aires Osvaldo Baletto 2,000
Temperley Temperley Buenos Aires Alfredo Beranger 13,000
Tristán Suárez Tristán Suárez Buenos Aires 20 de Octubre 15,000

Zone A

Standings

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Deportivo Morón 18 10 4 4 26 15 +11 34 Advance to Final and qualification for Copa Argentina
2 Ferro Carril Oeste 18 10 4 4 20 13 +7 34 Advance to Torneo Reducido and qualification for Copa Argentina
3 Los Andes 18 7 8 3 16 6 +10 29
4 Colón 18 7 8 3 21 14 +7 29
5 Deportivo Madryn 18 7 7 4 24 18 +6 28
6 Ciudad de Bolívar 18 6 9 3 15 12 +3 27
7 Almirante Brown 18 7 5 6 12 12 0 26
8 Estudiantes (BA) 18 7 5 6 14 15 −1 26 Advance to Torneo Reducido
9 Godoy Cruz 18 6 7 5 18 14 +4 25
10 San Miguel 18 5 9 4 16 19 −3 24
11 San Telmo 18 4 8 6 14 16 −2 20
12 Defensores de Belgrano 18 4 8 6 12 16 −4 20
13 Racing (C) 18 5 5 8 16 21 −5 20
14 All Boys 18 4 7 7 11 18 −7 19
15 Central Norte 18 4 6 8 11 16 −5 18
16 Acassuso 18 5 3 10 12 19 −7 18
17 Mitre (SdE) 18 3 8 7 18 22 −4 17 Relegation to Primera B Metropolitana or Torneo Federal A
18 Chaco For Ever 18 2 6 10 13 24 −11 12
Updated to match(es) played on 21 June 2026. Source: AFA
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) play-off (only for deciding relegation); 3) goal difference; 4) goals scored; 5) head-to-head points; 6) head-to-head goal difference; 7) head-to-head goals scored.[4]

Results

Home \ Away ACA ALL ABR CEN CFE CIU COL DBE DEM DMO EBA FCO GOD LAN MIT RAC SMI STE
Acassuso — 0–0 2–1 2–0 1–0 0–3 0–1 0–1 3–0 0–2
All Boys 0–0 — 0–0 1–0 1–0 0–0 0–0 2–1 1–1 1–1
Almirante Brown 2–1 — 1–0 1–0 1–1 0–2 1–0 2–1 0–0
Central Norte 1–0 — 1–1 0–1 0–0 2–3 1–0 1–1 0–0
Chaco For Ever 2–0 — 0–1 1–0 1–2 1–2 1–1 1–1 2–2
Ciudad de Bolívar 1–0 0–0 — 1–0 1–2 1–2 2–4 1–1 1–1
Colón 1–0 3–2 0–0 — 2–1 1–1 0–0 1–1 1–0 3–0
Defensores de Belgrano 0–1 1–1 0–0 0–0 0–3 — 1–1 0–0 1–0
Deportivo Madryn 0–0 2–1 2–1 — 1–1 3–0 0–1 0–0 2–1 2–2
Deportivo Morón 1–0 2–0 3–2 2–0 1–1 — 2–0 0–0 2–1 1–0
Estudiantes (BA) 2–1 0–1 1–0 0–0 1–1 0–2 — 1–0 1–1
Ferro Carril Oeste 2–1 0–1 1–0 2–1 1–0 0–1 — 0–2 1–1
Godoy Cruz 2–0 4–0 1–1 2–2 2–1 — 2–1 2–1 0–0
Los Andes 0–0 0–0 2–0 1–1 0–1 0–0 1–0 — 2–0 0–0
Mitre (SdE) 2–0 1–1 1–3 1–3 1–0 0–1 0–3 — 4–0
Racing (C) 2–1 1–2 2–0 0–2 3–0 2–2 1–0 0–0 0–0 —
San Miguel 1–0 1–0 2–0 0–0 2–1 1–1 0–2 1–2 — 1–1
San Telmo 2–3 1–0 0–1 3–1 0–0 0–2 2–0 0–0 2–0 —
Updated to match(es) played on 21 June 2026. Source: AFA
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Zone B

Standings

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Gimnasia y Esgrima (J) 18 11 3 4 30 20 +10 36 Advance to Final and qualification for Copa Argentina
2 Atlanta 18 10 3 5 23 13 +10 33 Advance to Torneo Reducido and qualification for Copa Argentina
3 Tristán Suárez 18 7 9 2 16 10 +6 30
4 Atlético de Rafaela 18 7 6 5 14 12 +2 27
5 Temperley 18 6 9 3 18 17 +1 27
6 Ferrocarril Midland 18 7 5 6 19 14 +5 26
7 San Martín (SJ) 17 6 5 6 18 18 0 23
8 Colegiales 18 6 5 7 17 17 0 23 Advance to Torneo Reducido
9 San Martín (T) 18 5 8 5 15 15 0 23
10 Deportivo Maipú 18 6 4 8 22 20 +2 22
11 Nueva Chicago 17 5 7 5 15 16 −1 22
12 Almagro 18 6 4 8 15 19 −4 22
13 Quilmes 18 5 6 7 16 14 +2 21
14 Gimnasia y Tiro 18 5 6 7 16 19 −3 21
15 Patronato 18 4 9 5 12 15 −3 21
16 Chacarita Juniors 18 5 4 9 14 20 −6 19
17 Güemes 18 5 4 9 18 30 −12 19 Relegation to Primera B Metropolitana or Torneo Federal A
18 Agropecuario Argentino 18 4 6 8 14 22 −8 18
Updated to match(es) played on 23 June 2026. Source: AFA
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) play-off (only for deciding relegation); 3) goal difference; 4) goals scored; 5) head-to-head points; 6) head-to-head goal difference; 7) head-to-head goals scored.[4]

Results

Home \ Away AGA ALM ATL ATR CHA CLG DMA FRM GEJ GYT GÜE NCH PAT QUI SMA SMT TEM TRI
Agropecuario Argentino — 0–0 1–0 2–1 1–2 0–2 1–1 0–0 2–0 0–2
Almagro 2–1 — 2–0 2–0 0–1 1–0 1–2 0–1 1–1
Atlanta — 2–0 1–0 3–1 3–0 1–1 1–2 0–0 1–0 3–1
Atlético de Rafaela 4–1 0–0 — 1–0 1–0 0–0 1–0 1–2 1–0 1–0
Chacarita Juniors 1–0 0–1 — 2–0 1–0 3–1 2–0 1–1 0–1 0–0
Colegiales 0–0 1–0 1–0 — 4–1 3–1 2–0 2–0 1–1
Deportivo Maipú 1–0 2–1 3–2 3–1 — 0–1 0–0 1–0 0–1
Ferrocarril Midland 2–0 1–1 1–2 2–0 — 2–1 0–1 2–0 0–0
Gimnasia y Esgrima (J) 6–1 2–1 1–1 2–1 — 4–0 2–0 1–0 2–1 1–0
Gimnasia y Tiro 2–3 2–0 2–1 1–0 1–1 — 1–1 1–1 1–0 0–0
Güemes 1–1 0–2 2–1 1–0 1–3 — 0–1 1–0 2–1 0–2
Nueva Chicago 1–2 0–0 2–0 0–0 2–2 3–1 — 1–1 0–0
Patronato 0–0 2–0 2–0 0–0 1–1 1–2 2–1 — 1–1
Quilmes 2–0 0–0 2–1 0–0 1–0 0–0 3–0 — 0–1
San Martín (SJ) 2–0 1–2 2–1 2–1 1–1 1–0 — 1–1
San Martín (T) 0–1 2–1 1–1 2–2 2–0 2–0 0–0 0–0 — 0–0
Temperley 1–0 2–1 0–5 4–1 0–0 3–3 2–1 1–1 —
Tristán Suárez 0–0 0–0 0–0 1–3 3–0 2–1 1–1 2–1 0–0 —
Updated to match(es) played on 23 June 2026. Source: AFA
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Interzonal matches

The interzonal matches will be played on the seventh and twenty-fifth matchdays.[1]

Copa Argentina qualification

Fifteen Primera Nacional teams will qualify for the round of 32 of the 2027 Copa Argentina, which will be the top seven teams of each zone and the best eighth-placed team at the end of the season, which will be selected according to points, goal difference, goals scored, and a drawing of lots if needed.

Ranking of eighth-placed teams

Pos Grp Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 A Estudiantes (BA) 18 7 5 6 14 15 −1 26 Qualification for Copa Argentina
2 B Colegiales 18 6 5 7 17 17 0 23
Updated to match(es) played on 23 June 2026. Source: AFA
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Drawing of lots.

Season statistics

As of 23 June 2026

Top scorers

Rank Player Club Goals[5]
1 Uruguay Franco Fagúndez Deportivo Morón 7
Argentina Lautaro Gordillo Gimnasia y Tiro
Argentina Martín Pino Godoy Cruz
4 Argentina Martiniano Moreno Atlético de Rafaela 6
Argentina Ignacio Lago Colón
Argentina Luis Silba Deportivo Madryn
Argentina Juan Sánchez Sotelo Güemes
Argentina Mauricio Asenjo Los Andes
Argentina Marcos Machado Mitre (SdE)
Argentina Maximiliano Álvarez Tristán Suárez

See also

References

  1. "Primera Nacional: fixture para la temporada 2026" [Primera Nacional: fixture for the 2026 season] (in Spanish). AFA. 23 December 2025.
  2. "Primera Nacional 2026: quiénes debutan, quién vuelve y todos los partidos de la fecha 1" [2026 Primera Nacional: who are the ones debuting, who is back and all the matchday 1 games] (in Spanish). La Voz del Interior. 12 February 2026. Retrieved 12 February 2026.
  3. "Así se jugará la Primera Nacional en 2026: fixture, formato y los clásicos" [This is how Primera Nacional will be played in 2026: fixture, format and the derbies] (in Spanish). Olé. 22 December 2025.
  4. "Reglamento General AFA" (PDF) (in Spanish). AFA.
  5. "Estadísticas Primera B Nacional". AFA.