By Canadian Press

Canadian women climb one spot to No. 9 in latest FIFA rankings in wake of W Gold Cup

Mar 15, 2024 | 6:52 AM

Canada had the last laugh on the U.S. despite losing to its North American rival in a penalty shootout in the semifinals of the CONCACAF W Gold Cup.

The Canadian women, who outscored the opposition 14-0 in winning their first four matches at the inaugural women’s Gold Cup, climbed one spot to No. 9 in the FIFA rankings released Friday.

The U.S., which went on to defeat Brazil 1-0 in Sunday’s championship game, dropped two places to No. 4 — paying for an upset group-stage loss to Mexico.

The Mexicans climbed four places to No. 31.

Spain consolidated its position atop the rankings with England moving up two places to No. 2. France remained at No. 3, despite losing 2-0 to Spain in the UEFA Women’s Nations League final, followed by the U.S., Germany (up one), Sweden (down one), Japan (up one), the Netherlands (down one), Canada and Brazil (up one).

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North Korea dropped out of the top 10, falling to No. 11.

Mexico and Slovenia (No. 41, up three) were the highest climbers in the top 50 with Zambia (No. 65, up five), Puerto Rico (No. 85, up 18) and Kosovo (No. 91, up nine) also on the move. Puerto Rico was unlucky at the W Gold Cup, losing a drawing of lots to Costa Rica to determine who moved on to the knockout round to face Canada in the quarterfinal.

The Solomon Islands (No. 88, up 21) made the biggest jump, after wins over American Samoa, Samoa and Fiji. Samoa suffered the biggest drop, falling 10 rungs to No. 105.

El Salvador, Kosovo, Lebanon, Nepal, Puerto Rico, Saudi Arabia, Solomon Islands, Spain, Tanzania and Zambia have all achieved their highest-ever points totals.

Iraq (No. 172) joined the rankings, which now features a record 193 teams. And that figure could be eclipsed in June with six more teams — Chad, Djibouti, Eritrea, Gibraltar, Libya and Sudan — just one official match away from joining.

FIFA says 126 international matches were played during the ranking period. The next women’s rankings will be released June 14.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 15, 2024

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press