Nacional B Live Scores, Fixtures and Standings

Nacional B, also known as the Bolivian Nacional B Copa Simón Bolívar, is Bolivia’s national men’s second-tier football league and a principal route into the country’s top division. Reinstated in its current nationwide form in 2016, the competition brings together clubs emerging from Bolivia’s regional football structure and determines which sides earn the opportunity to reach the División de Fútbol Profesional Boliviano. It is governed by the Federación Boliviana de Fútbol (FBF).

2Role in Bolivian football/2

The competition exists to connect Bolivia’s nine departmental football systems with the national professional pyramid. Clubs from Santa Cruz, La Paz, Cochabamba, Chuquisaca, Oruro, Tarija, Beni, Pando and Potosí compete for national recognition and promotion. This gives the tournament a broader purpose than a conventional second division: it is both a national championship for ambitious regional clubs and the main sporting gateway to the top flight.

The overall champion normally gains direct promotion to the Primera División. The runner-up generally receives a further opportunity through an indirect promotion or promotion-relegation playoff against a lower-ranked top-flight club. The exact arrangements can be defined by the regulations for each edition, but promotion is the central sporting objective throughout the tournament.

2Qualification and regional access/2

Entry is principally earned through the departmental championships or equivalent regional leagues. In the usual qualification structure, the champion and runner-up from each department receive places in the national competition. This system ensures representation from across Bolivia rather than concentrating access in the country’s largest cities.

Some editions also include a Torneo Interprovincial route. That pathway can give champion clubs from smaller provincial or rural football communities the chance to qualify, extending the competition’s reach beyond the main departmental centres. As qualification numbers and detailed access rules may vary between editions, the relevant season regulations determine the final field.

2Competition format and progression/2

Nacional B uses a hybrid structure that combines league football with knockout ties. The opening phase is commonly organised geographically, allowing clubs to compete against nearby opponents and reducing the travel burden created by Bolivia’s large and varied territory. Teams generally play a double round-robin schedule in this phase, meeting each opponent at home and away.

The strongest teams then progress to a national or elimination phase. Depending on the edition, the competition may use groups before the knockout bracket, with qualifying places determined by final group positions and, in some formats, the inclusion of the best third-placed teams. The knockout route commonly begins with a Round of 16 and continues through the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final.

Pairings can reflect regional considerations in the earlier stages, while later rounds may use draws, performance-based seeding or other methods specified in the regulations. The structure is therefore designed to balance practical travel considerations with a progressively more national and high-stakes finish.

2Points, standings and knockout ties/2

League-stage standings follow the standard football points system:

*three points for a win;
*one point for a draw;
*no points for a defeat.

When teams finish level on points, goal difference is a principal tiebreaker. Goals scored and head-to-head criteria may also be used where the edition’s regulations provide for them. Because the detailed order can change, the competition rules for the relevant season remain decisive.

Knockout rounds are generally played over two legs, with each club hosting once. The aggregate score across the two matches determines who advances. If the aggregate score is level, the tie is typically settled by a penalty shootout; extra time is not a universal feature of every round and may depend on the stage-specific regulations. The final can have its own provisions.

2Calendar, governance and recorded coverage/2

The FBF oversees the competition and sets its regulations, qualification arrangements and match procedures. A typical edition begins around May and concludes in November or December, moving from regional qualification and group competition towards the national knockout rounds and promotion-deciding matches. The recorded first event for this competition page is dated 7 November 2020.

Xtra-Stats records six seasons, from 2020 through 2025. Those editions provide a useful statistical window into a competition whose structure can evolve as the FBF adjusts the number of entrants, the regional phase and the promotion mechanism. The 2016 reinstatement remains the key point in the modern development of the nationwide tournament, while its enduring identity is rooted in linking departmental football with the highest level of the Bolivian game.

For supporters, clubs and players, Nacional B is consequently both a league and a national opportunity. Its regional entry system gives local champions a route onto a larger stage; its group and knockout format tests consistency, travel management and performance under pressure; and its promotion stakes make the final stages among the most consequential fixtures in Bolivian lower-division football.