Even without having to play their final friendly match, the Argentina national team has officially reclaimed the number one spot on the FIFA rankings thanks to unexpected slip-ups by both France and Spain.
Right on the eve of the 2026 World Cup, the international friendly matches in early June have created major seismic shifts, completely altering the landscape at the top of world football.
The France national team—who held the number one spot after the March fixtures—suffered a rude awakening when they unexpectedly lost 1-2 to Ivory Coast right at home at the Stade de la Beaujoire. This defeat caused coach Didier Deschamps’s squad to be deducted 7.89 points, dropping them to third in the world with 1,869.43 points.
Meanwhile, reigning European champions Spain also missed a golden opportunity to claim the throne. In their final home game before heading to the US, they were disappointingly held to a 1-1 draw by underdogs Iraq at the Estadio Riazor. This draw cost La Roja 3.38 points, forcing them to settle for second place with 1,873.01 points.
The poor string of results from the two European representatives inadvertently paved the way for Argentina to return to dominating the top of the world with 1,874.81 points. Notably, regardless of the outcome of their upcoming friendly against Honduras, Lionel Messi and his teammates are guaranteed to hold onto the top spot when the next update is published by FIFA on Monday. Even in the worst-case scenario, the South American representatives will still have 1,874 points, ranking above Spain and France.
This return puts an end to a volatile period in the rankings since Spain snapped Argentina’s post-2022 World Cup dominance in July 2025. Currently, the gap between the top three spots is a mere 5 points, signaling an incredibly fierce competition at the upcoming tournament in North America.
