Last update 23 May, 2026 by Alberto Llopis
The FIFA ranking is the official classification that orders national soccer teams according to their international results.. Nation in 1993, but the current system is not the same as the one used at the beginning: from 2018 FIFA uses a model called SUM, more like a cumulative points system than the old four-year average of results.
That's why it's worth updating the explanation.. The old formula, based on averages, rival's strength, confederation and parties of recent years, It is no longer the one that decides the classification. Today each team adds or loses points after each match depending on the importance of the match., the result and the expected difference in level between both teams.
What is the FIFA ranking
The FIFA ranking, officially known as the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking, is a list that compares the national teams recognized by FIFA. There is a male ranking and a female ranking, although each one has its own calendar and update.
Its objective is to give a global reference of the performance of each selection. It is not a perfect list nor does it always coincide with the football sensation of the moment, but it is the official classification that FIFA uses as an international thermometer.
What is the FIFA ranking for?
The FIFA ranking is useful for several things. The most visible is to measure the evolution of a selection: If he wins important games he goes up, If you lose to inferior rivals you lose. It also serves to organize draws, define seedings in FIFA competitions and compare teams from different confederations.
In practice, It has three clear uses: give sporting context, influence certain draws and fuel the football debate. A selection can be very high due to regularity, although it is not necessarily the most feared in a specific tie.
How the current FIFA ranking works
From 2018, FIFA calculates the ranking with the SUM system. The idea is simple: a selection is based on a previous score and, after every game, sum up the remaining points. The change depends on how expected the result was..
If a team beats a very strong rival, receives more points than if he beats a much inferior rival. If you lose against a worse-placed team, lose more points. If the result was quite expected, the movement is usually small.
The current official formula is expressed like this:
New points = old points + I x (W – We)
The letter I represents the importance of the match. W represents the actual result. We represents the expected result according to the difference in points between the two teams before playing.
What does each part of the formula mean?
The importance of the match is key. A friendly does not have the same points as a World Cup qualifier or a World Cup final phase match. The more relevant the encounter, more points you can move.
The real result is summed up in victory, draw or defeat. A victory is worth more than a draw and a defeat does not add up. In matches decided by penalties, FIFA applies specific rules to reflect that the tie existed before the shootout.
The expected result measures the previous difficulty. If a very favorite team wins, it barely confirms what was predicted. If a modest team defeats a power, the impact on the ranking is much greater.
Which games give the most points
Friendlies are the games that move the classification the least. Official and qualifying tournament matches have more weight. The final phase matches of a World Cup are the ones that can change the ranking the most, especially from the decisive rounds.
This explains why a team can rise a lot during a Euro Cup, an America Cup, an African Cup or a World Cup, while another barely moves during a friendly window.
Why the FIFA ranking sometimes seems strange
The FIFA ranking may seem strange because it does not measure the pure talent of a squad or the perception of the fan.. Measures weighted results. A constant selection, who wins often and avoids setbacks, It may be above another with more names but irregular results.
The calendar also influences. Not all teams play the same rivals, not even with the same frequency, nor in competitions of the same demand. That is why the ranking is useful as a reference, but it should not be read as an absolute truth about who plays better.
Differences between the old and current system
Before 2018, The ranking used a formula based on averages and accumulated results over several years. This system received a lot of criticism because it could favor certain calendars and penalize some teams in an unintuitive way..
With the SUM system, The ranking is more like a live ranking. Each match modifies the previous score. The change can be big or small depending on the importance of the match and the surprise of the result..
Simple example
Imagine that a favorite team plays against a worse ranked team. Yes win, It will add little because it was expected. If tie, you will lose points. And lose, the fall can be significant.
Now imagine the opposite: a mid-ranked team beats a world power in an official match. In that case it will rise quite a bit, because the actual result was much better than the result expected by the formula.
Who leads the FIFA ranking
Leadership changes over time. Brazil, Germany, Italia, France, Spain, Argentina, Belgium and the Netherlands have had outstanding stages in the men's classification. On the official FIFA website you can always consult the updated table and the calendar of upcoming publications.
Beyond the number one of each month, the interesting thing is to observe trends: teams that rise after a great tournament, teams that fall due to poor qualifiers or champions that consolidate a stage of dominance.
So, What is it really for?
It serves to have an official and comparable reference between teams. It does not replace football analysis, but it does help to organize the international map. For FIFA, besides, It is a useful tool in draws and seedings. For the fan, It is an approximate photograph of the competitive moment of each team.
That is why the FIFA ranking must be understood for what it is: a mathematical classification based on results. Can generate debate, may seem unfair in specific cases, but it offers a common measure to compare selections from around the world.
Sources and related reading
The technical explanation is based on the official procedure published by FIFA for the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking. You can also consult the updated men's ranking on the official FIFA website.
In Colgados por el Fútbol you can also read about what is the best selection in history and other historical rankings of international football.
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