Super Falcons Drop to 43rd in FIFA Rankings

Nigeria’s Super Falcons have dropped seven places to 43rd in the latest FIFA Women’s World Rankings. They fell from 36th position.

Even with this drop, the Falcons are still the highest-ranked women’s team in Africa. South Africa is in second place, followed by Morocco, Ghana, and Zambia in third, fourth, and fifth respectively.

This drop came after a tough performance at the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations held in Morocco. The Falcons lost their first match 3-2 to Malawi, won against Zambia 1-0, and beat Egypt 6-2 to make it to the quarter-finals.

In the quarter-finals, they lost 1-0 to Cameroon on August 9. This loss knocked Nigeria out of the tournament.

The outcome ended Nigeria’s chance for automatic qualification to the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil. This was also the first time the Falcons did not reach the semi-finals in this competition.

Later, Nigeria lost 2-1 to South Africa in a play-off match in Casablanca on August 13. Thembi Kgatlana and Refiloe Jane scored for South Africa. Christy Ucheibe scored for Nigeria from a penalty in stoppage time.

This defeat means Nigeria will miss the Women’s World Cup for the first time since the tournament started in 1991.

On a brighter note, the Falcons had some good news in their quest to qualify for the 2028 Olympic Games. They won two matches against Comoros in the qualifying rounds.

The next FIFA Women’s World Rankings will come out on December 7, 2026.