By Jayme Monsanto, Contributing Reporter
RIO DE JANEIRO – Since its inception, in 1993, the FIFA World Ranking is an important performance indicator of the 207 national teams that are affiliated to the International Football Association. The ranking is updated on a monthly basis, and this month brought significant changes.
After the 3-0 victory against Peru for the World Cup Qualifiers, Brazil advanced two spots and now ranks 4th, passing Italy, the 2006 FIFA World Champions. The European team recently had a 1-1 draw with Ireland, also for the Qualifiers, and Brazil outscored them in the ranking.
Even though Spain has never won a World Cup, the Iberian team is in the ranking’s first position. After winning 2-1 against Turkey, the team is now undefeated for 31 matches, opening a 350 point gap from the second place. With that, Spain is now the most dominant leader in the FIFA World Ranking history.
Argentina’s 6-1 defeat against Bolivia for the FIFA World Cup Qualifiers reflected negatively in their ranking, but they kept themselves in the 6th position, although now they are followed closely by England, as the European team won 2-1 against Ukraine, also for the Qualifiers.
France, the 1998 World Champions, returned to the top 10 after defeating Lithuania by 1-0. The team’s return to the top 10 happened at the expense of Portugal, who is now at the 11th position.
April’s FIFA World Ranking:
1- Spain —————-1729 points
2- Germany ———–1362 points
3- Netherlands ——–1360 points
4- Brazil —————-1275 points
5- Italy ——————1271 points
6- Argentina ———–1201 points
7- England ————-1173 points
8- Croatia ————–1151 points
9- Russia —————1117 points
10- France ————-1074 points
Brazil also advanced in the Women’s ranking, now in the 2nd place, it’s best rank ever. The first place belongs to the USA.
The next FIFA World Ranking update will be published on May 6th.