Iran up to 22nd in FIFA Men’s Ranking, second in Asia
Iran moved up by two spots to stand in the 22nd place in the latest FIFA Men’s Ranking, released by the international football governing body on Thursday.
Amir Qalenoei’s side collected 1556.59 points to remain second to Japan (1595.96 points) – 20th in the global ranking – among the Asian Football Confederation’s member associations, with Australia (1530.45), Korea Republic (1529.3), and Saudi Arabia (1421.26) following Iran in the AFC ranking.
The new ranking came after Iran routed Afghanistan (6-1) and Kyrgyzstan (5-1) before a Sardar Azmoun’s strike sealed a 1-0 victory for the country over host Uzbekistan in the inaugural CAFA Nations Cup final in June.
Qalenoei, who replaced Portuguese Carlos Queiroz in March following the World Cup group stage exit last year, is tasked with steering the Asian powerhouse in next January’s AFC Asian Cup in Qatar, where the three-time champion will be chasing a first title in 48 years.
Also in the FIFA Men’s Ranking, the top three remained intact as reigning world champion Argentina is followed by France – beaten by the Argentines in the World Cup final shootout – and Brazil respectively.
England moved up to fourth, thanks to back-to-back victories in the Euro 2024 qualifiers in June, with Belgium, Croatia, the Netherlands, Italy, Portugal, and newly-crowned UEFA Nations League champion Spain completing the top 10.