The Gambia national team the Scorpions have set another best record in the 2009 January FIFA rankings by moving 13 places up and jumping 33 points in the global listings, APA learns here Thursday.
According to the latest monthly ratings published by the world football governing body, the Scorpions are now ranked 75th in the world and 18th in Africa, marking one of the biggest achievements of the national team. In last year’s rankings, the country was ranked 88th in the world and 23rd in Africa.
The African champions Egypt have recorded their best ever FIFA ranking after they were named as the 15th top team in the world.
The Pharaohs of Egypt have moved a spot better than their previous highest FIFA placing of 16th position in the December rankings.
The other major movers in the rankings are Nigeria, who are the 17th best team in the world according to the January rankings, two places better than last month.
Cameroon remains the top African team in the monthly rankings at 14th in the world.
The biggest African movers for January are Somalia, who moved up 22 places and are now 178th ranked team in the world.
European champions Spain retain the top spot, while Germany are ranked second, and the Netherlands are placed third.