SportsFIFA Releases World Ranking; Nigeria Drops Three Places to 35th

FIFA Releases World Ranking; Nigeria Drops Three Places to 35th

SAN FRANCISCO, November 27, (THEWILL) – World football governing body, FIFA, has released the latest edition of the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking of national teams around the world and, as expected, there was plenty movement in both directions.

There were no less than 160 full international clashes in November, including qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™, CAF Africa Cup of Nations, and the UEFA EURO, and the results from these games were reflected in the rankings.

The podium remains unchanged for November, but leaders Belgium have widened the gap on their intending usurpers, France. Meanwhile, third-placed Brazil are closing in on Les Bleus after extending their perfect start in South American qualifying for Qatar 2022.

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Elsewhere, there are familiar faces back in the Top Ten. Mexico (9th, +2) and Italy (10th, +2) make their glorious return after nine and four years respectively. Croatia (11th, -2) and Colombia (15th, -5) are the two teams dropping out to make way for the duo.

Further down, Romania (37th, +7) and Hungary (40th, +7) have also made impressive gains, while Egypt (49th, +3) and Cameroon (50th, +3) move into the Top 50 at the expense of Costa Rica (51st, -1) and Ghana (52nd, -4).

Two other African sides, however, were the biggest climbers this month: Equatorial Guinea (134th, +10) and Burundi (138th, +10). The former shone in back-to-back victories over Libya (111th, -9) in the AFCON qualifiers, while the latter first drew and then beat Mauritania (101st, -3) in the same competition.

The other national teams that have moved up five or more places in this month’s classification are: Latvia (136th, +6), Curacao (76th, +5), Azerbaijan (109th, +5) and South Sudan (163rd, +5).

ALSO READ: FIFA Reveals Shortlist For 2020 Football Awards

THEWILL recalls that Nigeria’s disappointing double-header draws with Sierra Leone during the AFCON qualifiers played this month were results that did nothing to help Nigeria’s international ranking and as this November edition showed Nigeria (35th, -3) dropped three places and is now ranked 35th.

In Africa, Nigeria is ranked fourth behind the highest ranked Senegal (20th in the world), Tunisia (26th), and Algeria (31st).

About the Author

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Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.

Jude Obafemi, THEWILLhttps://thewillnews.com
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.

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