FIFA RANKING
Brazil extend lead in world rankings, Spain drop below Italy
In the last change to the FIFA World Rankings before the World Cup starts next month, Brazil increased their lead at the top and Spain dropped below Italy.
Brazil, the only team to have competed in every World Cup finals, will go into next month’s tournament in Qatar seeking a record-extending sixth crown.
They will do so with a bigger lead at the top of the rankings after friendly wins over Ghana and Tunisia widened the gap on second-placed Belgium who lost to the Netherlands in the Nations League.
Brazil’s great rivals Argentina remained third, with world champions France fourth and Euro 2020 runners-up England fifth.
There was good news for Italy, who failed to qualify for the World Cup finals again, as they climbed above Spain into sixth place.
Other World Cup-bound teams climbing the rankings were Croatia, up three places to 12th, Iran up two spots to 20th and Serbia who rose to 21st.
-Reuters
The Super Eagles have slipped to 45th in the latest FIFA men’s world ranking, their lowest position in over six years, according to figures released Thursday by world football governing body, FIFA.
Despite remaining unbeaten in recent outings, Nigeria’s ranking points were not enough to maintain their previous position. The team also sits sixth on the African continent, behind Morocco, Senegal, Egypt, Algeria and Côte d’Ivoire.
The decline highlights both the fierce competition within Africa and the importance of securing victories in high-value matches such as World Cup qualifiers.
Sports Village Square warns that the ranking could affect Nigeria’s seeding in future tournaments, potentially drawing the Super Eagles against tougher opponents in qualification campaigns.
The publication also urges the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) to strengthen preparations for upcoming qualifiers, emphasizing consistency, competitive match scheduling, and squad stability as key to reversing the downward slide.
Nigeria’s FIFA Men’s World Ranking trend over the last ~5 years
| Year | Approximate Rank* | Notes/Remarks |
| 2020 | 35th | Nigeria ended 2020 at 35th globally. |
| 2021 | 36th | Nigeria’s year-end ranking in 2021 was 36th. |
| 2022 | 35th | Ended 2022 ranked 35th in the world. |
| 2023 | ~40–42nd | Mid-/late-2023 rankings show Nigeria around 40-42nd globally. |
| 2024 | 44th | By end of 2024, Nigeria dropped to 44th globally. |
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Nigeria’s women’s team, Super Falcons, remain at the 36th position in the FIFA ranking released this Thursday morning despite their victory at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.
They, however, remain Africa’s best-ranked team. The stagnation may have been influenced by the fact that the time of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations also coincided with that of the European version, where most of the teams enjoy a higher ranking than the Nigerian side.
It will be another 126 days before the next ranking is made on 11 December 2025.
South Africa, at the 56th position, is the next ranked African team, while Morocco is at 64, Zambia is 65th, and Cameroon is at the 66th position.
Ghana, the third-placed team at WAFCON, places 67th in the global ranking.
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Zimbabwe has taken a five step up in the FIFA ranking just released this Thursday. The Zimbabwe Warriors are now 116th in the world ranking among the teams that got astronomical rise in the current ranking.
The 90th minute scored against Nigeria in World Cup qualifiers that ended 1-1 contributed to the rise.
Meanwhile, Nigeria also rose a step to the 43rd position from that of December 2024. They are 6th in Africa. Have they beaten Zimbabwe, their ranking could have been better.
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