FIFA Ranking: Nigeria stay ahead of Ghana, South Africa despite missing World Cup

Nigeria's Super Eagles have slipped to fourth place in the African rankings despite maintaining their 26th position globally in the latest FIFA Men's World Rankings released on Monday.

The three-time African champions retained their global standing with 1,585.2 ranking points to stay ahead of South Africa and Ghana who are ranked 54th and 65th in the World respectively.

Although they dropped in the continental rankings, the Super Eagles remain comfortably inside FIFA's top 30.

Eric Chelle's side has not featured in a competitive fixture since suffering a 2-1 defeat to Portugal in an international friendly in June.

Nigeria's failure to qualify for the expanded 48-team World Cup continues to impact the country's football profile.

The Super Eagles finished second behind South Africa during qualification before advancing past Gabon in the playoff stage. However, they were eliminated by the Democratic Republic of Congo via a penalty shootout in the decisive playoff.

Despite their absence from the tournament, Nigeria remain the second-highest ranked nation among countries that failed to qualify for the World Cup, behind only Denmark, who occupy 21st place globally.

Fresh from winning the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Spain have reclaimed the No. 1 position in the FIFA rankings, replacing Argentina.

Argentina dropped to second after losing the World Cup final, while France, England and Brazil complete the world's top five.

FIFA is expected to publish its next Men's World Rankings on October 7, 2026.