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FIFA recently released the latest rankings for the men's national teams. Things are going to change drastically over the next few months as we're now less than eight weeks away from the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Some of the top international sides like Germany continue to be outside the top 10. Germany are 11th in the rankings and their recent form hasn't been all that great. USA maintain their place at 14 but are closing in on Uruguay.
The top 10 continues to be populated by the stalwarts of football. Without further ado, let's take a look at the FIFA World Rankings for the month of September.
#10 Denmark - 1665.47 points
Denmark climbed to 10th position in June after collecting 11.87 points since March. The Danes are doing well now and could climb even higher by the time FIFA releases their next set of rankings as they've beaten France 2-0 in the UEFA Nations League.
But it did come on the back of a 2-1 loss to Croatia. It has to be said that Denmark is gradually growing into a footballing powerhouse on the international front.
#9 Portugal - 1678.65 points
Portugal have incredible squad depth right now. They have enough quality personnel on call to field three top sides. Portugal are ninth in the FIFA Rankings with 1678.65 points.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup is likely to be Cristiano Ronaldo's last. They have an array of world-class players in their squad and are fancied to have a healthy run in the tournament.
#8 Netherlands - 1679.41 points
Netherlands have a very exciting team and were the biggest gainers between March and June. They picked up as many as 20.75 points and jumped from 10th to eighth in the rankings.
After defeating Poland 2-0 and Belgium 1-0 in their latest UEFA Nations League fixtures in September, the Dutch national team could climb even higher next time.
#7 Italy - 1713.86 points
Italy's failure to qualify for the World Cup and subsequent 3-0 defeat to Argentina in the 2022 Finalissima caused them to drop 9.45 points between March and June. They are currently seventh in the FIFA World Rankings.
Italy beat England 1-0 in their most recent UEFA Nations League outing. A match against Hungary awaits them and if they can pick up a win in that game, they will gain a few points that could see them climb higher in the rankings.
#6 Spain - 1716.93 points
Spain are once again establishing themselves as a force to be reckoned with on the international stage. A couple of draws against Portugal and Czech Republic helped them gain a place over the struggling Italian side between March and June.
Spain have only played one game since and it was a losing affair against Switzerland. They have another game against Portugal coming up and another loss might see them drop a few points and fall below Italy once again.
#5 England - 1737.46 points
Last time out, England lost 24.25 points but fortunately for them, they remained in fifth place. The Three Lions have fared poorly on the international stage since the end of March. They have failed to win any of their five games since.
Gareth Southgate's men suffered a 1-0 loss to Italy in their most recent UEFA Nations League outing. Prospects are rather bleak for them as they prepare to take on Germany in their final fixture of this international break.
#4 France - 1764.85 points
France lost the most number of points between March and June among the top 25 nations in the FIFA World Rankings. They lost as many as 25 and slipped to fourth. Les Bleus registered a 2-0 win over Austria in their first UEFA Nations League fixture in September.
However, a 2-0 loss to Denmark in the subsequent match has made them look vulnerable again. Didier Deschamps' side that looked indomitable a couple of years ago is starting to reveal plenty of cracks.
#3 Argentina - 1770.65 points
Argentina gained 5.52 points between March and June and it was enough for them to displace France and book a place inside the top 3. La Albiceleste are very likely to remain there even though they haven't played a whole lot of football since beating Italy 3-0 in the Finalissima and dispatching Estonia 5-0 in June.
They beat Honduras 3-0 in a friendly this month and will take on Jamaica in their final fixture of this international break.
#2 Belgium - 1821.92 points
Belgium stayed at the top of the FIFA Rankings for three years. They fell to second in March and have remained there ever since. Belgium beat Wales in their first UEFA Nations League match of the ongoing international break.
However, they fell to a 1-0 loss to the Netherlands in their latest outing. Owing to the gap between them and third-placed Argentina, Belgium are likely to remain second for a while.
#1 Brazil - 1837.56 points
Brazil retain their place at the summit and will likely stay there for a while. The five-time World Cup winners beat Ghana 3-0 in a recent friendly and will take on Tunisia on September 27 in their final game of this international break.
Brazil were able to climb to the top of the FIFA Rankings by virtue of their unbeaten run in the CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifiers.
