The Super Eagles’ performance
and eventual qualification for the
Round of 16 at the just-
concluded World Cup in Brazil
has impacted on the July FIFA
ranking as Nigeria now occupies
the 34th position.
In the rankings table released by
the world football governing
body on Thursday, Nigeria
garnered 660 points and moved
up 10 spots as against June’s
631 points at 44th position.
Although Nigeria may not have
been too convincing at the 2014
World Cup, their performance is
still good enough to earn them a
lift.
The African champions now
place third in Africa behind
Algeria and Cote d’Ivoire.
Algeria who is now ranked
Africa’s best team has 874 points
to occupy the 24th position in
the world, while Cote d’Ivoire has
850 points for 25th place in the
world.
However, another African
representative at the World Cup,
Ghana, slipped down by one spot
to 38th in the world and fifth in
Africa, behind Egypt who
remained static with 645 points.
On the global scene, four-time
world champions
Germanyreaped the reward of
their triumph at the World Cup.
They nowlead the table for the
first time in 20 years with 1,724
points.
World Cup runners-up Argentina
are now second with 1,606
points, while third-place finishers
Netherlands have moved 12
positions up the table and are
now third in the world with
1,496 points.
Also, all the eight teams which
dropped out of the World Cup at
the quarter-finals stage have
climbed up the ranking.
Colombia is now fourth, up by
four spots, and Belgium fifth, up
by six spots.
France is now 10th, up by seven
spots, and Costa Rica is now
16th, up by 12 spots making it
the central Americans’ highest-
ever ranking.
If the winners have gained, the
less successful teams on the
other hand are left counting the
cost of failure in their rankings.
Former champions Spain have
fallen from the top spot to eighth
place, while Portugal is now
11th, down by seven spots, and
Italy is 14th, down by five spots.
England is now placed 20th,
down by 10 spots, while 2014
World Cup hosts Brazil have
dropped four places to the
seventh position.
According to the world
governing body, the results of
111 international “A” matches
have been taken into account for
the current edition of the FIFA/
Coca-Cola World Ranking.
“Sixty-four out of these matches
were played at the World Cup in
Brazil, 46 were friendlies and one
was a CONCACAF continental
qualifier.
“The total number of
international “A” matches taken
into account so far this year is
now 362,’’ the FIFA Media Office
said in a statement. (NAN)
