France has reclaimed the No. 1 spot in the FIFA world rankings for the first time since September 2018, overtaking Spain, according to the latest rankings released on Wednesday. The French team surged two places after impressive friendly wins last month against Brazil and Colombia.
Spain, who had held the top position since September 2025, slipped to second following a scoreless draw against Egypt. Defending FIFA World Cup champions Argentina dropped one spot to third, while England remained fourth and Portugal moved up to fifth. Brazil fell to sixth, and the Netherlands, Morocco, Belgium, and Germany completed the top ten.
Among the teams set to co-host this summer’s World Cup in North America, Mexico climbed to 15th, swapping places with the United States at 16th. Canada is ranked 30th. Of the 48 participating teams, 37 are in the top 50, while only three of the top 30 — Italy (12th), Denmark (20th), and Nigeria (26th) — will miss the tournament.
Meanwhile, ENigeria Newspaper reports that the Nigeria’s Super Eagles, led by coach Eric Chelle, maintained their 26th position on 1,585.09 points following performances in the March international window. The Eagles secured a 2-1 victory over Iran, earning 5.34 ranking points, but a 2-2 draw with lower-ranked Jordan resulted in a 1.81-point deduction.
“The FIFA ranking operates on the Elo model, which adjusts points based on match results, opponent strength, and match importance,” the report notes.
Nigeria maintained the gains from their impressive performance in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, where they placed third and rose from 38th to 26th globally which was their highest ranking in 16 years, previously attained in May 2010 when they were 21st.
Morocco continues to hold the top spot on the African continent with 1,755.87 points, while Senegal comes in second with 1,688.99 points. Nigeria comes in third place, ahead of Ivory Coast, Egypt, and Algeria.
