Photo: UAF
Ukraine drops to 30th in FIFA world rankings
The Ukraine national football team has fallen to 30th place in the latest FIFA world rankings, the Ukrainian Association of Football (UAF) reported.
Despite not playing any official matches since the previous ranking, Ukraine lost two spots. The team, led by coach Serhiy Rebrov, was overtaken by two participants in the January Africa Cup of Nations — Algeria and Nigeria. Among UEFA teams, Ukraine is currently 14th.
Ukraine’s first opponent in the 2026 World Cup qualifying play-offs, Sweden, is ranked 42nd. Of the team’s other potential play-off opponents, Poland is ranked 34th and Albania 63rd.
Ukraine reached the play-off stage of World Cup qualification and will host Sweden in the semi-final on March 26. If successful, Ukraine will play for a place in the World Cup finals on March 31 against the stronger team from the Poland–Albania match.
FIFA ranking leaders
Spain tops the rankings, followed by Argentina in second and France in third.
Ukraine in World Cup qualifying
Ukraine played in Group D. The team opened qualification on September 5 with a 0-2 loss to France in Wrocław, Poland. On September 9, Ukraine drew 1-1 with Azerbaijan in Baku.
Subsequent results included:
- October 10: Ukraine 5-3 Iceland; France 3-0 Azerbaijan
- October 13: Ukraine 2-1 Azerbaijan; France 2-2 Iceland
- November 13: Ukraine 0-4 France; Iceland 2-0 Azerbaijan
- November 16: Ukraine 2-0 Iceland; France 3-1 Azerbaijan
France topped Group D with 16 points and qualified directly for the World Cup. Ukraine finished with 10 points and advanced to the play-offs. Iceland had 7 points, Azerbaijan 1.
New 2026 World Cup format
The 2026 FIFA World Cup will feature 48 teams for the first time in history. There will be 12 groups of four teams each. The top two teams from each group, along with the eight best third-placed teams, will advance to the round of 16.
Matches will take place across 16 cities: in Canada — Toronto and Vancouver; in Mexico — Guadalajara, Mexico City, and Monterrey; in the USA — Atlanta, Boston, Dallas, Houston, Kansas City, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, Philadelphia, San Francisco, and Seattle.
