By Deborah Nnamdi
Nigeria’s Super Eagles have climbed four places to 41st in the latest FIFA men’s world rankings, regaining their position among Africa’s top five teams.
The updated rankings, released on Friday, reflect a strong surge for the three-time African champions, who moved up from 45th to 41st, overtaking Ivory Coast, now ranked 42nd globally.
Nigeria’s impressive ascent follows their solid performance in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, highlighted by a 2–1 win over Lesotho in Polokwane and a dominant 4–0 victory against the Benin Republic in Uyo. Those results not only improved their ranking points but also secured their spot in the continental playoffs for the World Cup.
The Super Eagles will now face Gabon—77th in the world and 15th in Africa—for a place in the final playoff round, where either Cameroon or DR Congo could await.
Across the continent, Morocco remains Africa’s top-ranked team despite slipping one place to 12th globally, followed by Senegal (18th), Egypt (32nd), and Algeria (35th), with Nigeria completing the top five. Ivory Coast, Tunisia, Mali, Cameroon, and South Africa round out Africa’s top ten.
On the global stage, Spain retained the number one spot after back-to-back World Cup qualifying victories over Georgia and Bulgaria. Argentina climbed back into second place following wins against Venezuela and Puerto Rico, while France dropped to third after being held to a 2–2 draw by Iceland..
