India gains six places, ends year at 166th in FIFA rankings

The Indian football team jumped six places by virtue of its 1-0 win over Guam in the 2018 World Cup qualifiers to be at 166th in the year-ending FIFA rankings issued on Thursday.

The national team gained 318.75 rating points from that win against higher-ranked Guam on November 12 in Bangalore to end the year with a gain in rankings.

Last month, India slumped to 172nd, its second lowest-ever ranking after two back-to-back losses in the World Cup qualifiers.

India also gained two places to be at 31st spot among Asian countries. Iran continued to lead the Asian rankings at 45th, followed by Korea (51st), Japan (53rd), Australia (57th) and United Arab Emirates (65th).

Overall, Belgium occupied the top spot in a year-ending rankings chart for the first time in its history. Argentina, Spain, Germany, Chile, Brazil, Portugal, Colombia, England and Austria followed suit in the top 10.