Chinese media has also given up on Chinese football, which has plummeted to 5th tier in Asia.

The International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) announced the latest FIFA rankings for April on the 3rd. Argentina maintained its first place, while Spain climbed from 3rd to 2nd. France dropped to 3rd. England, Brazil, Netherlands, Portugal, Belgium, Italy, and Germany formed the top 10.

In Asia, Japan (15th) and Iran (18th) were the highest. Recently, South Korea, struggling with three consecutive draws in international matches, remained at 23rd. Australia (26th), Qatar (55th), Uzbekistan (57th), Saudi Arabia (58th), Iraq (59th), Jordan (62nd), and United Arab Emirates (65th) formed the top 10 in Asia.

China, likely to be eliminated from the World Cup after three consecutive losses in international matches, remained at 17th in Asia and ranked 94th overall. Despite its ambition to target the world stage, China has not even reached the 3rd tier in Asia. It is at risk of being surpassed by Southeast Asian countries like Thailand (99th) and Vietnam (109th).

After the FIFA rankings were announced, shocking voices of introspection have emerged within China. The Chinese media outlet 'Zhipa Yin' lamented, "The latest ranking of the Chinese national team is 94th, the lowest in the past decade. The lowest point in Chinese football history was 109th in 2013. This is the lowest since FIFA began compiling rankings. How did Chinese football, which rose to 37th in 1998, end up like this?"

FIFA has increased the number of qualifying nations for the 2026 North American World Cup from 32 to 48. It has granted eight direct tickets to Asia alone. There is a calculation that including China will boost the World Cup's popularity.

Despite FIFA's grand plans, China is struggling immensely with football. Ultimately, the likelihood that China will also be uninvited to the North American World Cup is very high.

'Zhipa Yin' noted, "Chinese fans are disheartened by football. They never knew how far they could fall, but there was a further drop. If this is the case, wouldn’t it be better for China to quit football?"

In 2024, China faced a scandal due to widespread match-fixing in professional football. Corruption within the Chinese Football Association has also been rampant. The foundations of football are deeply rotted. It is not surprising that China is failing in football.

[OSEN]