2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) runners-up, Super Eagles of Nigeria have moved up fourteen places from 42nd to 28th globally on FIFA’s latest rankings.
In the ranking table published on the website of the world football governing body on Thursday, the team garnered 1,522 points as against the 1,474 points garnered in December 2023.
The latest spot on the ranking is the team’s highest globally since May 2013, when the Eagles were ranked 28th also.
The upward movement further shoots up the Super Eagles as the third-placed team on the continent, behind Morocco and Senegal who have 1663 (12th) and 1620 (17th) points.
However, the newly-crowned African champions Cote d’Ivoire, reaped the rewards of their continental triumph on home soil by being in the 39th place having moved up by 10 spots.
AFCON’s second runners-up, South Africa climbed 8 spots to 58th, with Egypt (36th), Cameroon (51st) & Ghana (67th) dropping down after their early AFCON 2023 exits.
The Angolan side who were ousted in the last eight (93rd, up 24), are the biggest climbers in the latest installment of the global ranking.
In the points stakes, two-time Asian Cup winners Qatar (37th, up 21) chalk up the biggest tally (92.04 points) after capitalising on home comforts to successfully defend their continental crown.
Elsewhere, Jordan (70th, up 17), who were edged out in the final, make good ground, as do Thailand (101st, up 12), whose journey came to an end at the last-16 stage.
Qatar’s rise sees them enter uncharted territory, with two other teams also recording best-ever rankings.
Senegal (17th, up 3), which suffered shoot-out heartbreak at the hands of the eventual winners Cote d’Ivoire in the AFCON Round of 16, break new ground.
Tajikistan (99th, up 7) mark their maiden Asian Cup campaign by making a first-ever appearance in the top 100.
Other impressive performers are Equatorial Guinea (79th, up 9), South Africa (58th, up 8), Cabo Verde (65th, up 8), Namibia (107th, up 8) and Mali (47th, up 4).
Meanwhile, Argentina remained number one in the world while France and Brazil maintained second and third spots, respectively. England and Belgium took the fourth and fifth positions in the ranking.
DAILY GIST reports that the next FIFA world ranking will be released on April 4, 2024.
