Argentina Reclaims No. 1 in Fifa World Rankings Before World Cup

Argentina is back at No. 1 in the fifa world rankings just before the World Cup starts. The move puts Lionel Scaloni’s team atop the latest men’s list for the first time since July 2025, with FIFA’s rankings also shaping the seedings for the expanded 48-team tournament.

Argentina and Spain swap places

Spain stayed second after a 1-1 draw against Iraq in preparation for the tournament, while France fell two places to third. England held fourth, Portugal fifth and Brazil sixth, keeping the top end of the list packed with the teams expected to matter most in the draw.

Argentina arrived at the top after friendly wins over Honduras and Iceland. France’s warm-up schedule included a defeat by Ivory Coast, a result that came before the latest rankings were released and helped explain the shuffle behind Spain and Argentina.

Pochettino’s USMNT slips

Mauricio Pochettino’s USMNT dropped one place to 17th after a 3-2 win over Senegal and a 2-1 loss to Germany. Mexico climbed to 14th after wins over Ghana, Australia and Serbia, while Canada stayed 30th. Italy sat 12th and remained the highest-ranked nation not at the World Cup.

That makes the middle of the table just as relevant as the top. The rankings were used to place the 48 teams into four pots of 12, with the nine best-ranked teams going into Pot One alongside the three host nations.

Russia at 35th

Russia were ranked 35th after four years of playing only friendlies. FIFA and UEFA banned the country from competitions in 2022, and those rankings now reflect results gathered outside tournament football. New Zealand, at 85th, was the lowest-ranked of the teams set to take part.

For the teams near the cut line, the number beside the name changes more than vanity. It decides the path into the draw, where the Pot One spots give the biggest cushion and the play-off qualifiers land in Pot Four with the lowest-ranked sides.