Vietnam lose the most points in FIFA ranking

Vietnam lose the most points in FIFA ranking

Having lost 41.06 points in the FIFA Men’s World Ranking, Vietnam are out of the top 100 and no longer the highest ranked Southeast Asian team.

According to the updated FIFA Men’s World Ranking released on Feb. 15 after the conclusion of the 2023 Asian Cup and the 2023 African Cup of Nations (AFCON), Vietnam lost the most points and dropped 12 places from 94th to 106th.

This is the result of a disappointing Asian Cup campaign, where Vietnam lost 2-4 to Japan, 0-1 to Indonesia, and 2-3 to Iraq in the group stage.

Standing behind Vietnam in terms of points lost are Algeria, who were deducted 38.97 points and dropped from 30th to 43rd. India lost 35.53 points and fell to 116th, Guinea-Bissau lost 33.82 points and dropped to 118th, and Tunisia lost 33.37 points and dropped 13 places to 41st.

This ends Vietnam’s 1,905 consecutive days in the FIFA top 100 ranking, starting from November 29, 2018, and 2,248-day reign as the number one Southeast Asian team, starting from December 21, 2017.

Vietnamese players after losing 2-3 to Iraq in the Asian Cup group stage on Jan. 24, 2024. Photo by VnExpress/Lam Thoa

After advancing to the knock-out stages of the 2023 Asian Cup, Thailand gained 12 places to 101st, thereby leapfrogging Vietnam to become the highest ranked team in Southeast Asia.

Following Vietnam in Southeast Asia are Malaysia (132nd), the Philippines (139th), Indonesia (144th), Singapore (155th), Myanmar (162nd), Cambodia (179th), Laos (189th), Brunei (194th), and Timor Leste (200th).

2023 Asian Cup champions Qatar were awarded 90.4 points – the most of any team, lifting them from 58th to 38th. They are followed by Angola, earning an additional 72.83 points and rocketing from 117th to 93rd. 2023 Asian Cup runners-up Jordan gained 70.32 points to sit at 71st, South Africa earned 52.03 points to gain 7 places to 79th, and 2023 AFCON finalist Nigeria gained 47.83 points to jump from 42nd to 28th.

The world’s top 10 remains unchanged with Argentina, France, England, Belgium, Brazil, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Italy, and Croatia. Japan, despite losing in the quarterfinal of the 2023 Asian Cup, only lost one place in the ranking to remain the top-ranked Asian team. Iran (20th), South Korea (22nd), Australia (23rd), Qatar (38th), Saudi Arabia (53rd), Iraq (58th), Uzbekistan (65th), UAE (69th), and Jordan (71st) follow.

The FIFA Men’s World Ranking was first released in December 1992 and is updated every one or two months. Points are calculated using a formula that takes into account the weightings of matches and the relative strength of the two opponents. Friendly matches played during International Match Calendar windows have a coefficient of 10, and Asian Cup matches up until the quarterfinal stage have a coefficient of 35 and those from the quarterfinal stage onwards have a coefficient of 40.

Meanwhile, the expected result of the match is determined by the relative strength of the two teams. The greater the difference in the pre-match ranking, the lower-ranked team will be awarded the higher number of points if they win and deducted the fewer number of points if they lose.

The FIFA ranking is important as it is used to seed teams in qualifiers of FIFA competitions, such as the World Cup or Asian Cup. However, it does not necessarily reflect a team’s actual strength.