By Edi Umoh
The Super Eagles of Nigeria have climbed to third place in Africa and 26th position globally in the latest FIFA Men’s World Rankings released on Monday.
The Nigerian national team moved 12 places from 38th to 26th after an impressive outing at the 2025 African Cup of Nations in Morocco, where they emerged third overall.
Nigeria scored the most points in the latest ranking (+79.09), after impressive performances at the continental competition.
Eric Chelle’s side won six of seven matches, beating Tanzania, Tunisia, Uganda, Mozambique, Algeria and Egypt, but narrowly lost the semi-final to hosts Morocco on penalties.
Also read: Nigeria’s Super Eagles Fly In Latest FIFA Rankings
The Super Eagles are now the third-best team in Africa, behind AFCON winners Senegal, ranked 12th globally, and Morocco, placed eighth in the world.
The team quickly bounced back, securing third place with a 4-2 victory over Egypt in the playoff match, showcasing both attacking flair and mental strength.
The top 10 in the latest FIFA ranking continues to be dominated by football powerhouses: Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, the Netherlands, Morocco, Belgium, and Germany. The Super Eagles also recorded the highest points gain in the ranking, earning +79.09 points.
On the continental stage, the top 10 African countries are Morocco, Senegal, Nigeria, Algeria, Egypt, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon, Tunisia, Congo DR, and Mali.
Eric Chelle will remain as Super Eagles coach, NFF confirms
Meanwhile, the President of the Nigeria Football Federation, Ibrahim Gusau, has confirmed Eric Chelle will continue as head coach following Nigeria’s third-place finish at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.
NFF had set a target of getting to the final and winning the trophy for Chelle, but he fell short of this, losing to Morocco in the semi-final and winning the bronze medal instead.
Speaking after the tournament, Gusau stated that the national team displayed notable progress under Chelle and affirmed that the federation is committed to working with the coach as Nigeria aims to build on the performance.
“The team is close to running on autopilot and will definitely achieve a lot of success under the present technical crew,” Gusau said via NFF, reflecting on Nigeria’s campaign.
“The NFF is proud of the team’s performance and will continue to do its best to encourage, support, and motivate the team as we go forward.
“As the head of a hard-working technical crew, Mr Chelle has done exceedingly well within the one year he has been with us. He has shown enormous capacity, and we will continue to work with him.”
Nigeria finished third at the tournament after defeating Egypt 4-2 on penalties to win the bronze medal, following a goalless draw in regulation time at the Stade Mohamed V in Casablanca on Saturday.
