 At the finals of the 1996 Gold Cup, El Salvador defeated Trinidad and Tobago 3–2, with goals from Raúl Díaz Arce (2) and Ronald Cerritos in their first game, but then lost 2–0 to the United States and did not advance from the first round.At the 1997 UNCAF Nations Cup, hosted in Guatemala, El Salvador lost 3–0 to Honduras in their first match but defeated Panama 2–0 in their second.In the second group stage they finished in third place, losing 1–0 to both Guatemala and Costa Rica, and drawing 0–0 against Honduras.