Argentina concluded the recent international break with two victories over Mauritania and Zambia, but it was not enough to maintain its second place in the FIFA World Ranking, dropping to the third position. According to information gathered by the Argentine News Agency, France displaced the Argentine national team in the standings after achieving victories against higher-ranked opponents like Brazil, 2-1, and Colombia, 3-1. By constantly facing lower-level teams, the squad led by Lionel Scaloni, despite accumulating numerous consecutive victories in recent times, was surpassed by a French elite squad that repeatedly measures itself against better-ranked countries. In this way, it is very likely that Argentina will arrive at the next World Cup, to be held in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, in that position in the ranking. Although it did not pose any obstacle to securing participation in the World Cup, the situation reflects poor management and a poor level in the friendlies designated as preparations for the most important event of the year. What is the FIFA Ranking? The FIFA ranking functions as a position table where national teams gain or lose points according to their results in each match. Since 2018, a system called “SUM” has been used, which is simpler than the previous one: instead of averaging performances, points are added or subtracted after each match, depending on the result. Not all matches are worth the same. The points a team wins or loses depend on the importance of the match and the rival it faces. For example, beating a strong team gives more points than defeating a lower-level one. Additionally, the system takes into account the logic of the result: if a higher-ranked team beats a weaker one, it scores few points, but if it loses, it can drop significantly.
