How Do FIFA World Rankings Work?
The official FIFA world rankings are an important tool used to measure the respective quality of the 211 FIFA-affiliated nations around the world.
However, the FIFA ranking system is known for throwing up surprises and confusing fans. Belgium, for example, have repeatedly been placed towards the very top of the leaderboard in recent years, despite often flattering to deceive at major tournaments and consistently failing to live up to the title of 'Golden Generation' handed to the likes of De Bruyne, Hazard, and Lukaku.
In this article, we'll explain why it is that some national teams end up ranking particularly highly on FIFA's charts, even when it doesn't seem like they are performing especially well. We will explain the formula that is used to calculate these world soccer rankings, providing you with information about how both the men's game and the women's game are governed by the FIFA ranking formula.
What Is FIFA?
FIFA is the governing body responsible for overseeing international football across the world. An acronym that stands for Federation Internationale de Football Association, FIFA was founded in 1904, and its original purpose was to organise matches between different nations in Europe (it was later expanded to include South America, North America, Africa, Asia, and Oceania).
Today, FIFA's main job is to award hosting rights for the World Cup and help organise this flagship knockout competition every four years. On top of that, FIFA oversees continental confederations like UEFA, CONMEBOL and CONCACAF, and decides on the seeding of different footballing nations by analysing results in friendlies, qualifiers, and tournament fixtures.
What Are The FIFA World Rankings?
First introduced in the men's game in 1992, the FIFA world rankings are a way of scoring each official national football team in the world and creating a leaderboard ranking them from top to bottom.
While success in major tournaments like the World Cup and the European Championship is seen as more valuable by coaches, players, and fans, topping the world rankings is still viewed as an impressive achievement, particularly for countries that haven't won many (or any) international trophies in their history.
How The Men's FIFA Rankings Work
The way nations are ranked in the men's game is different from the way women's teams are ranked by FIFA, so it's worth spending some time examining each side of the sport separately.
In the men's game, a new ranking system was introduced in August 2018 after much deliberation from FIFA. After a period of two years devising the formula and choosing an appropriate algorithm, the new structure is based around something called an 'Elo system'.
This is a system of adding and subtracting points from a running total, based on results from individual matches. Teams are not ranked based on playing style or history, it's all about results, pure and simple: victories earn you points while losses take them away from you. However, some games are more important than others, as not all results are weighted the same. We'll go through the value of different types of games in the next section of this article, as we explain the formula used to calculate the overall rankings.
The FIFA Ranking Formula Explained
World rankings are decided using a complex-sounding equation, which we'll break down in detail below. The formula is:
P = Pbefore + I * (W – We).
In this equation, 'P' is the total points that a country stands on. 'Pbefore' means the points total they had before a given match, while the 'I' stands for Match Importance.
Match importance changes depending on the stakes of a game. Friendlies are worth five points outside FIFA windows and 10 points inside them, while games played in the group stages and quarter-finals of the Nations League are worth 15 points, games in the semi-finals and final of the competition, plus major tournament qualifiers, are worth 25 points 25 points, and continental tournaments matches up to the Round of 16 are worth 35 points.
From the quarter-finals of continental tournaments onwards, games are worth 40 points, and for the group stages and Last 16 of the World Cup it's 50 points. Finally, from the quarter-finals of the World Cup onwards, games are worth 60 points.
In this equation, the value of W is 1 for a win, 0.5 for a draw, and 0 for a defeat. Matches decided via a penalty shootout are deemed to be worth 'half a win' which equates to a value of 0.75. Winning in extra time is worth the same as winning in 90 minutes: 1 point.
According to FIFA's lengthy explanation of the ranking process, this system ensures points are "partially determined by the relative strength of the two opponents, including the logical expectation that teams higher in the ranking should fare better against teams lower in the ranking."
It was designed to allow a smooth transition from the previous formula, which used factors like match result, match status, opposition strength, and regional strength to calculate points totals. And there's a level of similarity between the men's and women's games when it comes to these rankings; however, there are some key differences worth pointing out.
How The Women's FIFA Rankings Work
The women's game uses a modified version of the Elo rating, termed by FIFA as 'SUM'. According to FIFA, "the new algorithm [was] developed specifically for the new FWR was fine-tuned to reflect a number of FIFA's considerations," including giving "less importance to friendly matches and more importance to final round competitions, such as the FIFA World Cup finals," and "excluding losses in knock-out rounds of final competitions from the calculation.
The women's system also takes home advantage into account, meaning that wins away from home are worth more than wins on your own patch. In addition, the women's ranking system takes into account all international matches played since the first official FIFA-recognised women's game in 1971, while the men's structure is based on matches from 1999 onwards.
The Top 5 Nations in the FIFA Men's World Rankings
FIFA World Rankings may take every single match into account, but they do not change after every game. The leaderboards are instead updated after each official international match window, so usually a few times a year. At the time of writing, the most recent rankings date to 18th September 2025, and in the men's game the leaderboard is as follows:
#1. Spain
The 2024 European Championship winners boast star players like Lamine Yamal and Rodri, but it's their excellent teamwork and coordinated attacking flair that has allowed to surge up to pole position.
#2. France
No country can rival France's talent production over the last decade, and they've consistently been placed towards the top of the leaderboard.
#3. Argentina
It's no surprise to see the current World Cup and Copa America holders in third place, with Lionel Messi still pulling the strings for Lionel Scaloni's team.
#4. England
In recent years England have enjoyed great success at major tournaments and pushed themselves into conversations about the most competitive men's national teams in world football.
#5. Portugal
One of the biggest footballing nations yet to have won a FIFA World Cup, Portugal are a country that world football's governing body have plenty of respect for.
The Top 5 Nations in the FIFA Women's World Rankings
The landscape of international women's football is extremely different, with US investment in the game stretching back for decades and leading to a situation in which other more established men's nations struggle to get a foothold.
#1. Spain
Top of both the men's and women's FIFA rankings, Spain have become a force to be reckoned with in world football. Not only are their national teams consistently winning major trophies, this western European nation is also producing a higher quantity of elite level coaches than anywhere else in the world.
#2. United States
The most successful team in international women's soccer history (with four World Cups, five Olympic gold medals and nine CONCACAF W Championship titles) has consistently been ranked Number 1 in the world, but right now they marginally trail behind Spain.
#3. Sweden
With star players like Stina Blackstenius and Johanna Rytting Kaneryd, Sweden are a major force within the European game and regularly one of the most feared sides when it comes to women's international tournaments.
#4. England
The Lionesses have performed incredibly well in tournaments under Sarina Weigman, winning two consecutive European Championship trophies in 2022 and 2025 and being defeated by the Spanish in the most recent World Cup final. However, results in qualifiers and friendlies have meant they trail some other major nations.
#5. Germany
The only country other than the US to win multiple Women's World Cup trophies, Germany have got their hands on this prize twice and are widely viewed as one of the leading advocates of high-level women's football.
Why Are FIFA Rankings Important?
FIFA rankings are important because they determine where national teams are seeded ahead of major tournaments. The higher you can rank, the more likely you are to face up against weaker opponents in your qualifying groups. This gives you a better chance of achieving qualification for major tournaments.
It could be said, then, that rankings mean more to smaller countries with less chance of reaching major tournaments like the World Cup or the European Championship. By boosting their ranking after collecting results against higher-placed sides, these nations can climb the leaderboard and improve their ability to reach these tournaments.
Check out our guide to the World Cup trophy for more information on FIFA's flagship international competition.
Author: Fred Garratt-Stanley
Lead Content Writer
Fred Garratt-Stanley is an experienced football writer and journalist, specialising in industry insights, tactical analysis, and the culture of the game. He has contributed to publications such as NME, GQ, The Quietus, and Resident Advisor. As Lead Content Writer at Jobs In Football, he focuses on providing reliable, research-driven articles to help people navigate careers in the football industry.
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