Nigeria’s Super Eagles drop from 44th to 45th in FIFA’s world rankings but remain sixth in Africa.
The slide highlights inconsistent performances as World Cup qualifying pressure continues to mount.
Nigeria’s Super Eagles have dropped one spot in the latest FIFA World Rankings, sliding from 44th to 45th position globally while holding on to sixth place in Africa.
The updated rankings, released Thursday via FIFA’s official X handle, reflect the team’s ongoing struggles under head coach Eric Chelle, particularly in the 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign, where inconsistent performances have dented their momentum.
This marks Nigeria’s second consecutive fall after slipping from 43rd to 44th in August following underwhelming results in international fixtures.
Meanwhile, other African sides have shown significant improvement.
Morocco remains the continent’s highest-ranked team, sitting 11th worldwide after winning eight of their last nine matches: Senegal, Egypt, Algeria, and Côte d’Ivoire complete Africa’s top five.
Nigeria’s next qualifier opponents, the Benin Republic, climbed to 93rd in the world, while South Africa’s Bafana Bafana, who drew 1–1 with the Super Eagles in June, rose to 55th, signaling stronger competition for World Cup qualification. At the other end of the table, Lesotho dropped to 153rd, while Zimbabwe recorded the biggest slide, falling nine places to 125th.
On the women’s side, Nigeria’s Super Falcons maintained their position as the 36th-ranked team globally. At the top of the women’s chart, Spain displaced the United States to claim the No. 1 spot for the first time in history.
