Nigeria is now ranked 38th globally in the latest FIFA ranking released on Wednesday by the World governing football body.

Despite the rise, Nigeria still trail Morocco, Senegal, Egypt and Algeria in top five places in Africa.

Also, Spain have maintained their grip on top spot in the FIFA/Coca-Cola Men’s World Ranking, with Argentina, France and England retaining their places behind the pace-setters.

After a busy period of international football, featuring the conclusion of FIFA World Cup 26™ qualifiers for UEFA and Concacaf, as well as the final CAF and AFC play-off fixtures, there has been some significant movement in the ranking.

The latest ranking will help determine the draws for the FIFA World Cup 2026 Play-Off Tournament and the European Play-Off, which will be held at the home of FIFA in Zurich on Thursday, 20 November. Read on for our full summary of the biggest movers and shakers following November’s update.

The biggest climbers in the top ten were Brazil, who moved up two places to fifth at the expense of Portugal and the Netherlands, who are down to sixth and seventh respectively.

According to FIFA, a total of 149 matches, including 79 friendly games, were played since the previous rankings update, contributing to the latest changes on the global table.