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FIFA Rankings: Morocco maintain top 10 status as France leapfrog Spain following Egypt stalemate

Morocco maintains its global standing... and Tunisia makes a significant leap

FIFA released its official update to the world rankings on Wednesday, with a significant change at the top following the results of the international break last March.

France moved to the top of the world rankings after impressing in their last two friendlies, defeating both Brazil and Colombia.

In contrast, Spain slipped to second place after a goalless draw at home against Egypt on Tuesday evening, in a regrettable match marred by racist abuse directed at the Pharaohs.

Argentina dropped one place to third, whilst England retained fourth place, followed by Portugal, who moved up one place, whilst Brazil slipped to sixth.

The Netherlands took seventh place, whilst Morocco retained its eighth-place position – the only Arab and African team in the top ten of the FIFA rankings – followed by Belgium and then Germany.

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And despite the huge shock of missing out on World Cup qualification for the third time in a row, the Italian national team moved up one place to 12th.

Morocco in their usual leading position... with Egypt and Tunisia making progress
The "Atlas Lions" capitalised on their first victory under new manager Mohamed Wahbi against Paraguay, following a previous draw with Ecuador, to top the rankings for African and Arab teams.
The closest African team in the rankings after Morocco is Senegal, which dropped two places to 14th.
Algeria sits in second place behind Morocco, with Les Verts remaining in 28th place, followed by Egypt, who moved up two places to 29th, and then Tunisia, who climbed three places to 44th.
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Qatar moved up one place to 55th, followed by Iraq, who secured their World Cup qualification and moved up one place to 57th.
The Saudi Arabian national team remained in 61st place, whilst Jordan moved up one place to 63rd, the UAE to 68th, Oman, which dropped one place to 79th, Syria to 84th, Bahrain, which dropped one place to 91st, and Palestine to 95th.

An ancient curse threatens France
For its part, the Spanish newspaper *Marca* commented on today’s rankings, stating: “The Spanish national team lost its lead in the FIFA rankings following a 0–0 draw with Egypt at the RCD Espanyol stadium.”
It continued: “This draw, coupled with France’s impressive run of victories during the March 2026 international window, has reshaped the landscape of world football.”
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She continued: “Before the final World Cup squad was announced, Luis de la Fuente’s side failed to overcome Egypt’s strong defence in a friendly match, which saw goalkeeper Juan García make his debut between the posts for La Roja.”
Regarding France’s rise to the top of the rankings, she highlighted an old curse that has yet to be broken, saying: “This negative result highlights a striking fact: no team that topped the world rankings before the World Cup has ever won the title.”
She concluded: “Falling back to second place could ease the pressure on the Spanish team ahead of the World Cup scheduled for June. Meanwhile, Morocco remains the only African team in the top ten.”

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Morocco in their usual leading position... with Egypt and Tunisia making progress

An ancient curse threatens France

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