USA Dropped: The latest version of FIFA’s men’s world football rankings came out Thursday, and Argentina stayed on top. They had just won their second straight Copa America title. Spain, which won the Euro, moved up to No. 3, while the US fell five places.
Britain, which came in second place in the Euros, France, and Brazil joined Argentina and Spain in the Top 5. When Spain beat England in the final game of the Euros on Sunday in Berlin, they moved up five spots in the rankings. England moved up one spot and took the No. 4 spot from Brazil.
There are now six teams in the ranks, down from three at the top. The Netherlands were in seventh place. Spain fell from No. 6 to No. 7. Colombia moved up from No. 12 to No. 9, moving up from No. 12 in the rankings. Italy was in tenth place.
The American men fell from No. 11 to No. 16 because they didn’t make it out of the group stage at Copa America.
No. 37 Venezuela, which made it to the quarterfinals of the Copa America, rose from No. 54 to become the biggest mover.
The men’s world rankings will be changed again on September 18. Following their win over France in the 2022 World Cup, Argentina has been ranked No. 1 in the world since 2023.
The women’s rankings, which were last changed in June, still put Spain at the top. They won the women’s World Cup in 2023. The other top women’s teams are No. 2 France, No. 3 England, No. 4 Germany, and No. 5 the United States.
Can the USMNT make a comeback in the upcoming two years?
The USMNT fell the most out of all the teams in FIFA’s top 40, which was a fair result.
They were going to show that they could play with the big boys this summer when they really got going. It didn’t work out that way, and now the USMNT is looking for a new head coach, direction, and players less than two years before they host the World Cup.
Friendlies in September and October against Canada, New Zealand, and Panama won’t make a difference. The USMNT’s next real chance to play at a high level will be at the Gold Cup in the summer of 2025.
That’s a long time for this young group to think about a bad summer when the programme is about to go through a lot of major changes.
Read More: Dramatic Escape: Argentina Edges Past Messi Scare in Copa América 2024.
Why USA Drops Five Spots in Football’s New Ranking?
Poor Performance in Recent Games:
Losses or draws in recent foreign games can have a big effect on rankings.
Strength of Opposition:
If you play underranked teams and don’t get convincing wins, your points total may go down.
Key Player Injuries:
When important players get hurt, it can hurt the team’s general performance and change the outcome of the game.
Inconsistent Form:
If you have a string of bad efforts and results, you may get ranked lower.
Better Performance by Other Teams:
If other teams do better and get better results, they can move up in the rankings, which can cause the USA to fall.
The most recent FIFA world rankings for men are as of July 18, 2024.
1. Argentina – Even
2. France – Even
3. Spain – Up 5
4. England – Up 1
5. Brazil – Down 1
6. Belgium – Down 3
7. Netherlands – Even
8. Portugal – Down 2
9. Colombia – Up 3
10. Italy
11. Uruguay – Up 3
12. Croatia – Down 3
13. Germany – Up 3
14. Morocco – Down 2
15. Switzerland – Up 5
16. USA – Down 5
17. Mexico – Down 2
18. Japan – Down 1
19. Senegal – Down 1
20. Iran – Even
21. Denmark – Even
22. Austria – Up 3
23. South Korea – Down 1
24. Australia – Down 1
25. Ukraine – Down 1
