England Up To All-Time High Third Place In FIFA World Rankings – Behind Only Germany And Spain!

Chris Wright

8th, August 2012

13 Comments

By Chris Wright

Not that they matter one iota, but England have moved up into third place in FIFA’s World Rankings – an all-time high – despite not playing a single competitive game in the month of July.

Yep. Due to whatever ridiculous algorithms FIFA use to construct their pointless dung heap, now only Germany and all-conquering reigning World and double European champions Spain are above Roy Hodgson’s boys in the standings.

England have leap-frogged Uruguay into third as the points accrued by the South American’s in winning last year’s Copa America seem to have arbitrarily lost some of their value (don’t ask us!) under the stupefyingly complicated system of co-efficients that FIFA use to determine the rankings.

Elsewhere in the August 2012 update, Brazil have dropped to an all-time low of 13th (due to them not playing competitive matches after qualifying for the 2014 World Cup as hosts), while Portugal, Italy and Argentina are unchanged in fifth, sixth and seventh respectively. Holland, Croatia and Denmark make up the remainder of the top 10.

South Sudan are the latest new entry on the list, and the 209th FIFA-approved nation overall, after drawing 2-2 with Uganda in their first competitive game as a country, allowing them  to sneak in in 199th place in the list.

For what it’s worth, here’s the top 20 lisitings in full (along with the rest of the home nations and the Republic of Ireland)…

1. Spain
2. Germany
3. England
4. Uruguay
5. Portugal
6. Italy
7. Argentina
8. Netherlands
9. Croatia
10. Denmark
11. Russia
12. Greece
13. Brazil
14. France
15. Chile
16. Ivory Coast
17. Sweden
18. Mexico
19. Czech Republic
20. Ecuador

26. Republic of Ireland
37. Wales
46. Scotland
101. Northern Ireland

Posted in International football

Share this article: Email

13 Comments

  1. ticotico says:

    Haha!

  2. plops says:

    Unbelievable Jeff!

  3. Nuno says:

    http://www.fifa.com/mm/document/fifafacts/r&a-wr/52/00/97/fs-590_10e_wrpoints.pdf
    Four years, covering one World Cup cycle, are taken into account. Matches older than 12 months within this four-year period depreciate blockwise on a yearly basis:
    Match average from past 12 months: 100%
    Match average from previous year: 50%
    Match average from year 3: 30%
    Match average from year 4: 20%
    Matches older than 4 years: 0% (deleted)

    So Uruguay lost 50% of the points won in Copa America (final match 24th July 2011). And part of the points they won in the World Cup (lasted longer than England). It seems pretty fair ranking SYSTEM to me.
    Still think England “looks” too high, but this ranking still beats IFFHS’s club ranking anyday (THAT is the most atrocious ranking ever…)

  4. JJ says:

    So FIFA ranks the quater finalist in Euro 2012 ahead of the Copa America 2011 CHAMPION.
    To be more specific, what has England done in the last four years to be in the top 10 (nevermind top 3) in the rankings? Yes, England went undefeated in Euro qualifying in a group with Switzerland, Montenegro, Wales, and Bulgaria (NONE in the top 20), but that that really mean ANYTHING?

  5. KKK says:

    How does being a quater finalist in Euro 2012 make you TOP 3 in the World? They’re not even top 4 in Europe.

  6. KKK says:

    BRAZIL – 13th. What a JOKE!!!

  7. agustin says:

    England honestly doesnt even deserve top 10.

  8. Anabelle says:

    Whomever makes up these lists must layoff the crack pipe right now.

    With all due respect to England, but number 3 I don’t think so.

  9. D3 says:

    What’s that classic line Clive Tyldesley delivers pretty much every time I play FIFA?

    Games are not won on paper

  10. Anonymous says:

    They are in top 3 because scholes could return

  11. Anonymous says:

    they are in top 3 because sholes could return

  12. fouldsy says:

    @plops: read that in kammy’s voice. cheers for the chuckle!

  13. Andy Carroll's Ponytail says:

    HAHA! Take that ya’all!! U can keep ur fooking trophies cos a generation’s worth of Quarter Finals has finally reaped us our just rewards!! Come’on England!! Let’s get to the Quarter Final of Brazil 2014!

    Note the sarcasm.

Leave a Reply to agustin