FIFA rankings: India jumps five places to 101, Argentina claims top spot 

Argentina & India (Image credit: Twitter)

The Indian men's football team was rewarded for their comfortable wins over Myanmar and Kyrgyzstan, as the Blue Tigers moved up five places to 101st in the latest FIFA rankings. Meanwhile, world champions Argentina reclaimed the top spot on the list for the first time in over six years in the year's first ranking chart, which was released on Thursday.

India's 1-0 and 2-0 wins over Myanmar and Kyrgyzstan respectively in the tri-nation tournament in Imphal last month earned them 8.57 rating points, improving five places from their previous ranking of 106. With a total of 1200.66 points, Sunil Chhetri and Co are now one place below New Zealand and one place above Kenya.

India's highest FIFA ranking to date was 94th, achieved in 1996. However, the team coached by Igor Stimac is at 19th place among 46 Asian nations. Japan, at No. 20, is the top-ranked Asian team.

Argentina claims top spot after six years

Argentina deserved the top spot in the International Governing Body of Football rankings after winning the Qatar World Cup last December with an impressive win over France in the final. Lionel Messi and Co started their 2023 campaign on a high note, defeating Panama 2-0 and Curacao 7-0 in friendlies. The South American team was rewarded for their success, rising one place to be on top of the list after six years.

After a 4-0 win over the Netherlands and a 1-0 win in Ireland in Euro 2024 qualifiers, France, the 2022 World Cup runners-up, moved up to second place. Meanwhile, Brazil dropped to third place after a 2-1 loss to Morocco in a friendly. Belgium, England, Netherlands, Croatia, Italy, Portugal and Spain are the other teams in the top 10.

The Central African Republic jumped ten places to 122nd in the latest rankings. The 2022 World Cup hosts Qatar are ranked 61st, while Canada, the other North American co-host of the 2026 World Cup, rose six to No. 47. Morocco, which has joined Spain and Portugal in a 2030 World Cup bidding plan, remained at No. 11.

The previous FIFA world ranking was published on December 22, and the next one will be released on July 20, 2023.