"Let's do well, our country."
According to the men's rankings released by FIFA on the 10th (Korea time) for July, Korea remains in 23rd place, the same as in April. Korea has maintained the same ranking since November of last year. The points increased slightly from 1574.93 to 1587.08, but there was no change in rank.
This is thanks to the two victories in the June A-match doubleheader, which served as the final schedule for the 2026 North and Central America World Cup Asian third qualifying round. The Korea national team, led by coach Hong Myung-bo, secured its 12th World Cup finals appearance by defeating Iraq 2-0 in an away match on the 5th of last month and finished the qualifiers on a high note with a 4-0 victory against Kuwait at home on the 10th.
Thanks to this, the Hong Myung-bo team finished the third qualifying round unbeaten (6 wins, 4 draws) and secured 1st place in Group B. They are the only Asian country to finish without a loss. At the same time, they set a historic record by becoming the sixth nation to qualify for the World Cup finals 11 consecutive times, following Brazil (22 times), Germany (18 times), Italy (14 times), Argentina (13 times), and Spain (12 times).
On the 7th, Korea also defeated China 3-0 in their opening match of the East Asian Football Federation (EAFF) E-1 Championship (East Asian Cup). However, this victory was not reflected in the current ranking.
In Asia, Japan still boasts the highest ranking. Japan is ranked 17th in the FIFA rankings, maintaining its position as the top nation under the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). Following them are Iran (20th), Korea, Australia (24th), Qatar (53rd), and Uzbekistan (55th).
However, both Japan and Iran, who are competing for the top position in Asia, dropped two places compared to their previous rankings. The two countries had confirmed their places in the World Cup finals before Korea and recorded one win and one loss in the June A-matches.
Notably, Japan lost 0-1 to Australia, failing to achieve an unbeaten record in the qualifiers, which contributed to a decrease in points. In the June A-matches, Japan focused on experimentation by excluding many key players and giving new opportunities to reserve players.
All other Asian countries are outside the top 50. China maintained 94th place, while Vietnam, led by coach Kim Sang-sik, dropped four places to 113th. Indonesia, which appointed Patrick Kluivert as coach after Shin Tae-yong's dismissal, improved its ranking from 123rd to 118th. North Korea slipped one place to 119th, just behind Indonesia.
Meanwhile, the number one in the FIFA rankings remains Argentina, led by Lionel Messi. Argentina has consistently maintained its position at the top since winning the 2022 Qatar World Cup in April 2023.
There are no significant changes at the top rankings. Not only Argentina, but Spain, France, England, and Brazil have retained their positions from the April rankings, holding the 2nd to 5th spots, respectively. Portugal, which won the UEFA Nations League last month, moved up to 6th place, surpassing the Netherlands.
As the World Cup stage approaches, the FIFA rankings are becoming increasingly important. The 48 countries participating in the 2026 North and Central America World Cup will be seeded based on the FIFA rankings during the draw scheduled for December. Therefore, the remaining time may change the seeding depending on ranking management.
In this tournament, the host countries Canada, the United States, and Mexico, along with the top 9 ranked countries among the World Cup participants, will be placed in Group 1, the countries ranked 10th to 21st in Group 2, 22nd to 33rd in Group 3, and 34th to 45th in Group 4.
Meanwhile, Chinese media 'Zhu Bo Dot Com' noted, "If Korea surrenders the 3rd place in Asia, it could be pushed to the 3rd seed in the World Cup draw," adding, "Now Korea is also at risk of facing strong teams in the group stage."
This media outlet expressed happiness, stating, "Korea is unlikely to earn many FIFA ranking points in the East Asian Cup, and the opponents in the evaluation matches are strong teams like the United States and Mexico, making it difficult to defend the ranking."
However, the response from Chinese fans is cold. One fan criticized, saying, "We are outside the top 90 and counting our rankings, why would we care about Korea's ranking?"
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