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FIFA World Rankings Defy Logic

Posted by Stan Hughes on Jul 16, 2010 in Featured Articles, World Cup | 0 comments

FIFA’s previous set of rankings, which were released at the end of May, were equally perplexing. It’s worth noting that of the 64 matches in World Cup 2010, the superior-ranked team secured victory over its lower-ranked opposition only half of the time. Sure, there is always going to be the occasional upset. But when the underdog is the victor 30 out of 64 times, it begins to look less of a coincidence and more of a flaw in the rankings. Remember, Japan (ranked 43 at the time) beat Cameroon (ranked then 19), Demark (ranked 36) defeated Cameroon (ranked 19), Ivory Coast (ranked 27) tied Portugal (ranked 3), and South Korea (ranked 47) beat Greece (ranked 13).

FIFA have a lot on their plate following the festivities in Africa; the goal-line technology debate is back, refereeing inconsistencies must be addressed and they must stop unveiling a new football at every tournament. The FIFA World Rankings fall some way down the list but the one thing they did get right: France are definitely outside the top 20 football nations on the planet.