National teams are entering their final days of preparation before the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. In that context, Spain and France played friendly matches whose results will allow Argentina to reclaim the top spot in the FIFA rankings, although that may not be great news for Lionel Messi and his teammates.
On Thursday, Spain played their final home match before departing for the United States, settling for a disappointing 1-1 draw against Iraq at Estadio Riazor in La Coruna. At the same time, France suffered a surprising 2-1 loss to Ivory Coast at Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes.
As a result, Argentina will reclaim the top spot in the FIFA rankings when the next update is released on Monday. The rating calculations will favor Lionel Scaloni’s side regardless of the outcome of Saturday’s friendly against Honduras, as they will have 1,874 points even in the worst-case scenario, ahead of Spain’s 1,873 and France’s 1,869.
Until now, the top spot belonged to France, who climbed to No. 1 during the March FIFA international window after overtaking Spain. Before that, Luis de la Fuente’s side had ended Argentina’s reign in July 2025, after the South Americans had led the rankings since winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
The negative FIFA rankings statistic
While returning to the top of the FIFA rankings may initially seem like good news for Argentina just days before the start of the 2026 World Cup in North America, history suggests otherwise.
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Since the FIFA rankings were introduced in 1992, no team entering a World Cup as the No. 1-ranked nation has gone on to win the tournament. In 1994, Germany held the top spot, but Brazil lifted the trophy. Brazil then entered the 1998 World Cup as the top-ranked team, only to lose the final to France.
The team led by Zinedine Zidane arrived at the 2002 World Cup atop the rankings, but Brazil emerged as champions. Four years later, the South American power once again entered the tournament as the top-ranked team, yet Italy lifted the trophy. In 2010, Brazil remained No. 1 in the FIFA rankings and again fell short, while Spain won the tournament.
The reigning champions failed to capitalize on the top ranking in 2014, as Germany claimed the title. The pattern repeated itself in 2018, when Germany entered the tournament atop the rankings but France became world champions. Finally, before Qatar 2022, Brazil led the rankings, yet Argentina went on to win the World Cup.
Messi and his teammates must break several streaks
The so-called curse of the FIFA rankings leader is just one of several streaks Lionel Messi and his teammates will have to overcome in their pursuit of the title in North America in 2026. They must also contend with a 64-year drought without a nation winning back-to-back World Cups, something Argentina have never accomplished in their history.
