Soccer/Football : FIFA Ranking (Europe)

FIFA World Ranking criteria and calculation method

The FIFA World Ranking determines the relative strength of all the men's national teams in the world based on their results. After the 2006 World Cup, FIFA presented the revised ranking system.

Earlier FIFA Rankings considered the performances of teams over an eight-year period. So, the most important change is that the new criteria uses results from the last four years and gives more weight to more recent matches and the strength of opponent.

Points are won on the basis of a number of specific criteria:

1. Match Result

Obviously, a win brings more points than other results (Win=3; Draw=1; Defeat=0; Win after penalty shootout=2; Loss after penalty shootout=1)

2. Match Status

Competitive matches have more relevance to a team's ranking than friendlies (World Cup=4; Confederation final and FIFA Confederations Cup=3; World Cup qualifier and Confederation qualifier=2.5; Friendly=1)

3. Opponent Strength

Wins over highly rated teams are more significant than against low-ranking opponents (Opponent Strength=[200-Ranking Position]/100. No.1=2, No.30=1.7, No.118=0.82 etc. Teams ranked 150th and below are assigned the minimum weighting of 0.5)

4. Regional Strength

European and South American teams and competitions are stronger than elsewhere (UEFA [Europe]=1; CONMEBOL [South America]=0.98; AFC [Asia], CAF [Africa], CONCACAF [North and Central America and Caribbean] and OFC [Oceania]=0.85)

5. Period

Results during the last 12 months count in full, those from the previous year count half, while games played up to three and four years earlier have much less importance (Within the last 12 months=1; 12-24 months=0.5; 24-36 months ago=0.3; 36-48 months ago=0.2)

Ranking Points Per Match = (Result Points) x (Match Status) x (Opponent Strength) x (Regional Strength) x (Period) x 100

The average of points gained from all matches over each calendar year determines the team's position in the FIFA World Ranking. It takes into consideration all international "A" matches, while the matches of an association's youth teams or other representative sides have no influence.

The number of goals scored or conceded and whether the match was played (at home or away) also have no influence in the new method of calculating. A team must play a minimum of 5 matches per year to be included in the FIFA World ranking.