15 hours ago
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The Vietnam national football team have returned to the FIFA Top 100 after nearly two years of absence, fresh off a 3-1 win against Malaysia in the Asian Cup qualifiers.
The victory propelled Vietnam five places up the ranking, to 99th.
In the Malaysia clash on Tuesday, captain Do Duy Manh opened the scoring before striker Nguyen Xuan Son delivered a brace. This helped Vietnam finish their Asian Cup qualifying campaign with a perfect record of six wins.
It also earned the squad an additional 9.67 FIFA ranking points, bringing their new total to 1,225.67.
By moving up from 103rd, Vietnam surpassed Tajikistan, Trinidad and Tobago, Mozambique and El Salvador. This marks the team's highest placement since reaching 94th in December 2023.
Vietnam's highest ranking remains 84th, achieved in September 1998.
The country fell out of the top 100 between 2012 and 2018. Under coach Park Hang-seo, the team returned to the top 100 in November 2018 and maintained that status until April 2024.
The team's lowest position in recent years was in October 2024, when they plummeted to 119th.
However, with head coach Kim Sang-sik at the helm, Vietnam have climbed back up the rankings, fueled by an impressive 13-match winning streak across all competitions.
Vietnam currently sit at 17th in Asia and second overall in Southeast Asia.
Thailand continue to hold the top spot in the region, ranking 93rd in the world with 1,252.14 points, their highest standing since 2008.
The Thailand squad have moved up one place after securing a 2-1 victory against Turkmenistan in the Asian Cup qualifiers on March 31, subsequently pushing China down to 94th.
This drop marks a significant low for China, as the last time they ranked below 94th was a decade ago when they hit 96th.
The next international break is scheduled for June 2026. However, Vietnam are not expected to hold a national team training camp during this period, opting instead to let players focus on the V. League.
The national team will assemble later to prepare for the ASEAN Cup, which runs from July 24 to Aug. 26.
Since the ASEAN Cup matches fall outside the official FIFA match calendar, they carry the lowest ranking coefficient. As a result, Vietnam are unlikely to see a significant improvement in their FIFA ranking during that tournament.
The FIFA ranking is calculated using the Elo system and are updated right after a game. A team's points change based on match results, the importance of the fixture and the difference in power between the two competing nations. The ranking is crucial, as it influences seeding for major tournaments.
At the top of the world ranking is France with 1,877.32 points, followed by European champion Spain, which slipped to second place following a scoreless friendly draw against Egypt.
The remainder of the top 10 includes reigning world champion Argentina, England, Portugal, the Netherlands, Brazil, Morocco, Belgium and Germany.
Asia is led by Japan at 18th in the world, followed by Iran, South Korea, and Australia.
