Belgium top FIFA World Rankings for second successive year

Belgium have been named the men's FIFA World Ranking’s Team of the Year for the second successive time.

They have retained top spot ahead of France and Brazil with England climbing one place to fourth and Uruguay taking fifth place.

A total of 1,082 international A matches have been played in 2019 - an all-time high since the rankings started in 1993.

Belgium, who also earned this award in 2015, won all 10 of their international A matches and in the process qualified for UEFA Euro 2020.

Last year’s World Cup winners France and Brazil have retained the positions they held at the end of 2018.

World champions France remain in second place ahead of Brazil in third, the positions they held in Argentina and Colombia are also in the top 10 - respectively ninth and tenth - at the expense of 12th-placed Switzerland, who have dropped four places, and Denmark, who have dropped six places to 16th.

The ranking’s Mover of the Year, meanwhile, is Qatar.

The FIFA World Cup 2022 hosts gained 138 points over the course of a year in which they won the Asian Cup, beating Japan 3-1 in the final, and made a strong start to the Asian Zone World Cup qualifiers.

Besides accumulating the biggest points haul, Qatar have also jumped a year-high 38 places to 55th, followed closely by fellow climbers Algeria, who have moved up 32 places to 35th, and Japan, who have climbed 22 steps to 28th.

UEFA, the European Federation, has lost three places in the top 50 compared to the end of 2018, and now has 28 teams, whereas the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football, the Asian Football Confederation and the Confederation of African Football have all gained one spot apiece.

The next FIFA World Ranking is due to be published on February 20 next year.