Nicaragua in the OTI Festival
and its two OTI member stations Telenica and Televicentro Nicaragua debuted in the OTI Festival in 1974 in Acapulco as did many of their Central American neighbours. The first Nicaraguan entrant in the contest was the well known Hernaldo Zúñiga who got the seventh place scoring five points.
History
Nicaragua was the most successful of the Central American countries In the OTI Festival. In fact, the broadcasters of that country got their first and only victory in Madrid in 1977 with the performer Guayo Gonzalez and his song "Quincho Barrilete" which was warmly welcomed by the audience and by the juries because its deep message. "Quincho Barrilete" seemed to be a song for children, but the lyrics talked against the social injustices, denouncing the widespread poverty and the lack of sensitivity of the leading class. The song managed to win the national final despite the Anastasio Somoza Debayle regime.In 1978, Managua, the capital city of Nicaragua, was supposed to host the OTI Festival according to the original rules, but that year marked the beginning of the Nicaraguan Revolution which ended in a bloody civil war that killed a lot of people and destroyed completely the country. Because of that situation, the host city was moved to Santiago. and Nicaraga was forced to withdraw from 1978 to 1980.
In 1980, the Central American country returned to the event selecting big names such as Carlos Mejía Godoy y los de Palancagüina, but the Nicaraguan results were not very successful until 1990. In the edition of 1990, which was held in Las Vegas, the singer Katia Cardenal got the second place for her country with the song "Dame tu corazón". Since then, Telenica and Televicentro took part in the competition until the last show in 2000, in which Lya Barrioz turned into the very last Nicaraguan entrant in the event.
National Final
Nicaragua, just like Mexico, Chile, Guatemala and later Cuba, held a national final which was annually organised both by Telenica and Televicentro Nicaragua. This national final was seen as a plattform for young Nicaraguan talents who wanted to be recognised in Latin America. The usual venue of the "Nicaraguan National OTI Contest" was the Rubén Darío National Theatre and the winner of the preselection was elected by a jury composed by famous local singers, radio presenters and TV personalities. The end of the main OTI festival also led to the end of this national final which was seen as a tragedy for the local musicians.Contestants
| Año | Artist | Song | Place | Pts |
| :es:OTI 2000|2000 | Lya Barroz | Libera corazón | ||
| :es:OTI 1998|1998 | :es:Trío Tabú|Trío Tabú | Somos | ||
| :es:OTI 1997|1997 | :es:Keyla Rodríguez|Keyla Rodríguez | Minuto a minuto | ||
| :es:OTI 1996|1996 | :es:Manuel Salvador Baltodano|Manuel Salvador Baltodano | Oh, luna | ||
| :es:OTI 1995|1995 | :es:Marta Baltodano|Marta Baltodano | Esa mirada | ||
| :es:OTI 1994|1994 | :es:Álvaro Villagra|Álvaro Villagra | La sombra del sol | ||
| :es:OTI 1993|1993 | :es:Walmaro Gutiérrez|Walmaro Gutiérrez | Cuando tengo tu amor | ||
| :es:OTI 1992|1992 | :es:Cristina Somarriba|Cristina Somarriba | Tocando luz | ||
| :es:OTI 1991|1991 | :es:Marta Baltodano|Marta Baltodano | América en mis entrañas | ||
| :es:OTI 1990|1990 | Katia Cardenal | Dame tu corazón | 2 | |
| :es:OTI 1989|1989 | :es:Salvador Cardenal|Salvador y Katia Cardenal | Días de amar | ||
| :es:OTI 1988|1988 | :es:Raúl Hernández|Raúl Hernández | Niña | 12 | 1 |
| :es:OTI 1987|1987 | :es:María Lili Delgado|María Lili Delgado | La vida es solo sueño | ||
| :es:OTI 1985|1985 | :es:María Eugenia Urroz|María Eugenia Urroz | Carta de amor para este tiempo | ||
| :es:OTI 1984|1984 | :es:Violeta Rostrán|Violeta Rostrán | Vuela, canción | ||
| :es:OTI 1983|1983 | :es:René Oliver|René Oliver | Pobre de ti y de mi | ||
| :es:OTI 1982|1982 | :es:Deyanira Toruño|Deyanira Toruño | Te canto porque te quiero | 19 | 3 |
| :es:OTI 1981|1981 | :es:Luis Enrique Mejía Godoy|Luis Enrique Mejía Godoy | Así te quiero, amor | 8 | 15 |
| :es:OTI 1980|1980 | Carlos Mejía Godoy y :es:Los de Palacagüina|Los de Palacagüina | La chavalita de España | 10 | 15 |
| :es:OTI 1977|1977 | :es:Guayo González|Guayo González | Quincho Barrilete | 1 | 12 |
| :es:OTI 1976|1976 | :es:Peter Vivas|Peter Vivas | De sol a sol | 8 | 3 |
| :es:OTI 1975|1975 | :es:Mauricio Peña|Mauricio Peña | Quiero agradecer al mundo | 8 | 4 |
| :es:OTI 1974|1974 | Hernaldo Zúñiga | Gaviota | 7 | 5 |