[Official] Korea is ranked No. 1 in Asia... Japan's ranking fell → 3 steps behind

*This content was translated by AI.

The South Korean national soccer team maintained its 22nd place in the FIFA rankings for the first time this year, the same as last month. On the other hand, as Japan's ranking, which is "Asia's No. 1," has fallen, the gap between Korea and Japan has already narrowed to three steps. The No. 1 spot in Asia, where Japan had maintained its unwavering No. 1, is now visible.

FIFA announced its FIFA ranking in January on the 20th (Korea Standard Time). January is not the A-match period set by FIFA, but a new ranking reflecting the performance of the tournament was announced as the CAF Africa Cup of Nations was held. The African Cup of Nations is a major competition organized by the continental soccer federation, such as the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Asian Cup and the UEFA European Championship (Euro).

All non-Africa teams, including South Korea, which did not have an A match, maintained their FIFA ranking points. South Korea remained in 22nd place with 1599.45 points. Instead, there has been a change in the rankings based on the rise or fall of the African teams.

In the process, Japan's ranking, "Asia's No. 1," fell one place from 18th to 19th. As Senegal, which was 19th, won the Africa Cup of Nations, it rose seven places to 12th place. Senegal accumulated 58.76 FIFA ranking points in January alone, recording 1648.07 points, and is on the verge of entering the top 10.

Along with Korea, Iran (20th) also maintained its ranking, ranking 19th in Japan, 20th in Iran, and 22nd in Korea. Japan, which once rose to 15th place in April last year, fell to 19th place, narrowing the gap with Korea by only three steps. It is noteworthy that the gap between Korea and Japan, which was once wide, is now in the view of the reversal, even if the FIFA ranking points are more than 50 points apart, making it difficult to change the gap at once.

South Korea, led by head coach Hong Myung-bo, maintained its 23rd place from November 2024 to September last year and has continued to maintain its ranking after rising to 22nd place in October. The two teams are in a mixed situation, with Japan falling from 15th in April last year to 17th in July and 19th in September, but falling back to 19th after a rebound.

In Asia, Australia (27th), Uzbekistan (52nd), Qatar (56th), Iraq (58th), Saudi Arabia (61st), Jordan (64th), and the United Arab Emirates (68th) ranked in the top 10 along with Japan, Iran, and South Korea. Among them, Japan, Australia, Uzbekistan, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia fell compared to last month. In addition to the top 10 in Asia, China ranked 93rd (14th in Asia), Vietnam 108th and North Korea 119th.

At the 2026 FIFA World North American World Cup, Mexico, which is in Group A with South Korea, changed from 15th to 16th, and South Africa from 61st to 60th. Only one final winner will head to Group A, followed by Denmark (21st), the Czech Republic (43rd), Ireland (59th), and North Macedonia (66th).

The first to seventh place overall remained unchanged in the order of Spain, Argentina, France, England, Brazil, Portugal, and the Netherlands. Belgium, Germany and Croatia fell one step by one to 9th to 11th, as Morocco, the runner-up of the African Cup of Nations, moved up from 11th to 8th. ▲Asia Japan (19th) ▲Africa Morocco (8th) ▲North, Central and American (15th) ▲South America Argentina (2nd) ▲Oceania New Zealand (85th) ▲Europe Spain (1st). The next ranking will be announced on April 1, after the A-match in March.

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*This content was translated by AI.