Iraq gains 2 points in FIFA’s world rankings

BAGHDAD / IraqiNews.com: The Iraqi soccer team has moved up to the 98th rank in FIFA’s September World Ranking from the 100th position last month. Scoring 340 points, Iraq was ranked 12th among Asian teams, following Australia, Japan, South Korea, Iran, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Qatar, Uzbekistan, North Korea and Syria. It maintained its 12th position among Arab teams, following Egypt, Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Libya, Qatar, Syrian and Sudan. The FIFA World Rankings is a ranking system for men’s national teams in Association football, currently led by Spain. The teams of the member nations of FIFA (Fédération Internationale de Football Association), football’s world governing body, are ranked based on their game results with the most successful teams being ranked highest. A point system is used, with points being awarded based on the results of FIFA-recognized international matches. Under the existing system, rankings are based on a team’s performance over the last four years, with more recent results and more significant matches being more heavily weighted to help reflect the current competitive state of a team. SS (P)/SR 1