FIFA Ranking: Nigeria ranked ahead of Tunisia, Ivory Coast, Ghana, South Africa despite World Cup miss

The Super Eagles have improved their standing in the global rankings, despite the recent disappointment against DR Congo, which condemned Nigerian fans to another World Cup spectacle in which their national team of choice will not be involved. 

Nigeria climbed to 38th in the FIFA Men’s World Ranking in the latest update (November 19, 2025). That is a three-place rise in the latest table after the recent international window and qualifiers. That jump put the Super Eagles ahead of AFCON group stage rivals, Tunisia (40th), in the new list and moved Nigeria up inside the higher end of CAF’s pecking order despite Nigeria’s failure to qualify for the 2026 World Cup. 

 Spain, Argentina and France remain the world’s top three in the same release. It should come as no surprise that those three teams are the bookmaker favourites for the 2026 World Cup. 

Morocco (11th), Senegal (19th) and Egypt (34th) remain the three top-ranked African countries, with the Super Eagles coming 5th, behind Algeria at 4th (35th globally).

The current African champions, Côte d’Ivoire, are 42nd, while Ghana and South Africa, two of Nigeria’s biggest rivals, are 72nd and 61st, respectively. DR Congo rose to 56th after knocking Nigeria out of the playoffs.