SerpApi.Org
The Republic of Ireland have made a surprising jump up the FIFA World Rankings after the World Cup concluded last Sunday.
The Boys in Green missed out on qualification for the tournament after their heartbreaking penalty shoot-out defeat to Czechia in the World Cup play-offs last March.
It was devastating for the Irish fans, who will now have to go 28 years without a World Cup appearance should they qualify for the next edition of the tournament in 2030.
However, missing out on the 2026 World Cup wasn’t exactly all bad for Ireland, as now, with the dust fully settled on the tournament, they’ve actually moved up the FIFA World Rankings.
Ireland have moved up three places to 55th in the world following the latest update in the rankings after the World Cup Final.
The main reason for this is the plight of Tunisia, who are the greatest fallers in the latest rankings, dropping a whopping 12 places to 57th after their disastrous campaign. The North African side crashed out at the group stage following defeats to Sweden, Japan and the Netherlands.
They also made the unique move of sacking their manager Sabri Lamouchi after the opening game 5-1 defeat to Sweden, and then hiring renowned African football specialist Herve Renard, but to no avail. They were also caught up in a doping scandal after eating ‘contaminated meat’ in Mexico.
Ireland are now above the likes of Slovenia, Saudi Arabia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Cape Verde, who themselves jumped up to 64th following their stellar campaign.
Spain are of course the number 1 team in the world after their World Cup triumph, with Argentina, France and England behind, respectively. Norway are the biggest jumpers in the rankings, moving up 12 places to 19th.
