Super Eagles drop to 44th in FIFA rankings despite unbeaten run

Nigeria’s Super Eagles have slipped to 44th place in the latest FIFA/Coca-Cola Men’s World Ranking, marking their lowest global position since June 2019, when they were ranked 45th.

The July 2025 update, released on Thursday, shows that despite an unbeaten streak in recent matches, the Super Eagles dropped one spot from their previous 43rd position. Interestingly, the team’s overall points actually rose slightly—from 1481.35 to 1484.26—a gain of 2.91 points, but it wasn’t enough to maintain or improve their ranking.

Recent performances by the Super Eagles include a 1–1 friendly draw against Russia on June 6, and an impressive campaign at the Unity Cup, where they defeated Ghana 2–1 in the semi-finals before playing out a thrilling 2–2 draw with Jamaica in the final.

Still, those results weren’t enough to prevent the downward movement in the global rankings. Notably, this marks the third time in nine months that Nigeria have been placed 44th, following similar standings in November and December 2024. The team had briefly climbed to 43rd in April before slipping again in this update.

Regionally, Nigeria remain fifth among African nations.

Morocco continue to dominate as Africa’s highest-ranked team at 12th worldwide. Senegal, the only African team in the top 10 to move up, now sits at 18th after climbing one spot. Egypt dropped to 34th, while Algeria held their ground at 36th following mixed recent results.

Ivory Coast, suffering a winless run in four games, slipped to 45th — placing them just behind Nigeria.

Other notable movements across the continent include:
Tunisia: steady at 49th
Cameroon: fell to 51st
Mali: dropped to 54th
South Africa: held 56th, despite playing eight matches with only one win
Global Highlights
Argentina maintain the top spot globally, followed closely by Spain, France, England, and Brazil. Croatia re-entered the top 10, while Mexico surged four places to 13th after their Gold Cup victory.

Costa Rica saw the biggest leap in the new ranking, climbing 14 spots after reaching the Gold Cup quarter-finals.

FIFA stated that over 200 international matches were factored into the July ranking. The next update is scheduled for release on September 18, 2025.