FIFA World Ranking: Super Eagles drop two spots

• Nigeria have dropped two spots to the 42nd spot on the updated FIFA ranking released on Thursday, November 30, 2023.
• The Super Eagles were ranked 40th in the world and sixth in Africa back in October.

The poor ratings suffered by the former African champions can be traced to their disappointing showings in two crucial 2026 World Cup qualifiers in November.

The Super Eagles were massive favourites to claim easy victories ahead of their meetings against Lesotho and Zimbabwe.

Nigeria, however, stumbled to two boring results, having to come back from a goal deficit on both occasions to claim a 1-1 draw against the Crocodiles in Uyo and the Warriors in Rwanda.

The Super Eagles remain the sixth-best nation among the teams in the Confederation of African Football.

The top five spots are claimed by Morocco, Senegal, Tunisia, Algeria, and Egypt, in that precise order.

Nigeria's rivals in the race for a spot in the 2026 FIFA World Cup, namely South Africa, Benin, Zimbabwe, Rwanda, and Lesotho, are ranked 66th, 97th, 124th, 133rd, and 148th, respectively.

Looking ahead to the Africa Cup of Nations, Nigeria's group opponents present a mixed challenge. Ivory Coast secures the 50th spot, while Equatorial Guinea and Guinea-Bissau trail at 88th and 103rd, respectively.

Zooming out to the global stage, the top ten teams in the world, as per the latest Fifa rankings, feature Argentina at the pinnacle, followed by France, England, Belgium, Brazil, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Italy, and Croatia.