Nigeria’s senior men’s national football team, the Super Eagles, has climbed to 26th position in the latest global ranking released by the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) on Monday, reflecting a significant boost in the country’s football profile.
The new FIFA ranking shows that the Super Eagles moved up by 12 places from their previous 38th position, a jump analysts attribute to Nigeria’s impressive performance at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), hosted in Morocco, North Africa.
Nigeria finished the continental tournament in third place after a competitive run that saw the team secure victories in six out of seven matches at the competition.
Okay News reports that Nigeria’s only defeat at the AFCON tournament came during the semi-final stage where the Super Eagles lost to the host nation, Morocco, on penalty kicks after a tightly contested match in Rabat, the Moroccan capital.
The Super Eagles went on to secure the bronze medal on Saturday by defeating Egypt 4–2 in the third-place playoff fixture, further boosting the team’s performance metrics under the FIFA ranking formula which considers match outcomes, tournament importance, and opposition strength.
The latest FIFA table now places Nigeria as the third-highest ranked football nation in Africa, sitting behind Senegal and Morocco, both of whom reached the AFCON final. Senegal, located in West Africa, now holds 12th position globally, while Morocco is ranked eighth in the world.
Algeria and Egypt, both of whom were eliminated by Nigeria during the tournament, occupy fourth and fifth positions respectively within the African regional ranking structure.
The updated global standings also show Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, and Croatia as the top ten football nations worldwide, underscoring the competitive gap between African teams and traditional football powerhouses in Europe and South America.
Football analysts say the Super Eagles’ improved ranking may influence future seedings for continental qualifications and inter-continental friendlies, while boosting morale ahead of international fixtures scheduled for later in the year.
