Bangladesh were rewarded for their wins against Cambodia and Laos and a draw against Laos with a five-place jump in the latest FIFA rankings, which was published today.
Since the last published ranking in April, the men in red and green beat Laos 1-0 away from home in the first round of pre-qualifiers of the World Cup earlier this month. Jamie Day’s charges then held Laos to a goalless draw at home in the second leg on June 11, earning the World Cup Qualifiers berth while helping their cause of a significant rise in ranking from 188th to 183rd.
The positive results helped Bangladesh overtake Mongolia, Bhutan and Laos and move up to 38th position among 46 Asian nations.
Belgium remain atop the rankings ahead of world champions France after back-to-back 3-0 wins over Kazakhstan and Scotland in Euro 2020 qualifying.
FIFA rankings
1. Belgium
2. France
3. Brazil
4. England
5. Portugal (+2)
6. Croatia (-1)
7. Spain (+2)
8. Uruguay (-2)
9. Switzerland (-1)
10. Denmark
Selected:
11. Germany (+2)
= Argentina
13. Colombia (-1)
14. Italy (+3)
= The Netherlands (+2)