The United States had a roller-coaster ride through CONCACAF regional World Cup qualifying in the 2022 winter window, winning two matches against El Salvador and Honduras which sandwiched a loss to leaders Canada.
Despite pulling six points from a possible nine, the United States fell in the latest FIFA world rankings, dropping two places to 13th, leapfrogged by CONCACAF rivals Mexico. Canada, meanwhile, rose a whopping seven spots after a perfect three-of-three wins in the January international window.
If (and likely when) the United States qualifies for a spot in the 2022 World Cup, FIFA rankings will be used to determine seeds for the top teams in the draw on April 1. The top seeds will be included in Pot A consisting of the top seven teams in the world plus the host nation.
MORE: Updated CONCACAF World Cup qualifying standings, schedule & results
As it stands, the United States would have a lot of work to do to become a 2022 World Cup seed, and may be out of the running with just three games against CONCACAF opponents remaining.
Still, the 13th position is still more than respectable for the United States, which sits above respected South American power Uruguay and 2018 World Cup runners-up Croatia.
USMNT 2022 FIFA World Rankings
The USA men’s national team is looking to break into the top 10 of the FIFA World Rankings, but after dropping to 13th in February, it will take a serious run of matches.
| Month | FIFA Ranking | Last / Change | CONCACAF Ranking |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb. 2022 | 13th | 11th / -2 | 2nd |
| Dec. 2021 | 11th | 12th / +1 | 1st |
FIFA World Rankings: Feb. 2022
The top names in the overall ranking remained relatively unchanged, as most of the top 10 is made up of European teams which did not partake in the added January/February international window.
Belgium held on to the top spot, with the only change in the top 10 seeing Argentina, which defeated Chile and Colombia in South American World Cup qualifying matches, overtake England for the 4th spot. Somehow, Germany jumped a spot into 11th, leaping above the United States despite not playing a match. Switzerland also fell a spot despite not playing.
MORE: Which teams can still qualify for the 2022 World Cup
Colombia continues to plummet down the rankings, currently sitting in a very perilous spot in the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifying table with only two matches remaining. Senegal, meanwhile, leaped two spots after its Africa Cup of Nations victory, now sitting 18th as the highest-ranked African nation.
The biggest riser in the rankings was Gambia, jumping a whopping 25 places into 125th after a push to the AFCON quarterfinals. The team that fell the most was Algeria, which disappointed mightily after a group stage exit at AFCON, causing it to fall 14 spots to 43rd.
Below are the top 20 teams in the FIFA Men’s Rankings released Feb. 10, 2022.
| Ranking | Team | Confederation | Last / Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Belgium | UEFA | 1 / — |
| 2. | Brazil | CONMEBOL | 2 / — |
| 3. | France | UEFA | 3 / — |
| 4. | Argentina | CONMEBOL | 5 / +1 |
| 5. | England | UEFA | 4 / -1 |
| 6. | Italy | UEFA | 6 / — |
| 7. | Spain | UEFA | 7 / — |
| 8. | Portugal | UEFA | 8 / — |
| 9. | Denmark | UEFA | 9 / — |
| 10. | Netherlands | UEFA | 10 / — |
| 11. | Germany | UEFA | 12 / +1 |
| 12. | Mexico | CONCACAF | 13 / +1 |
| 13. | United States | CONCACAF | 11 / -2 |
| 14. | Switzerland | UEFA | 13 / -1 |
| 15. | Croatia | UEFA | 15 / — |
| 16. | Uruguay | CONMEBOL | 17 / +1 |
| 17. | Sweden | UEFA | 18 / +1 |
| 18. | Senegal | CAF | 20 / +2 |
| 19. | Colombia | CONMEBOL | 16 / -3 |
| 20. | Wales | UEFA | 19 / -1 |
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