Canada jumps to 40th in FIFA rankings after fourth-place finish at Copa America

Canada moved up eight spots in the latest FIFA men’s rankings after finishing fourth at the Copa America.

The Canadians, who narrowly lost to Uruguay in Saturday’s third-place game at the tournament, sat 40th in the rankings released Thursday by soccer’s world governing body.

Canada’s highest ranking was 33rd on Feb. 10, 2022, during its successful qualifying run for the 2022 World Cup.

Canada remained fourth in the CONCACAF federation, which covers North and Central America and the Caribbean. Third-place Panama also jumped eight spots to 35th after advancing to the Copa America quarterfinals.

The United States still led CONCACAF but fell five sports to 16th after failing to make it out of the Copa America group stage as host. Second-place Mexico, which also failed to advance to the knockout stages, dropped two spots to 17th.

Venezuela, which Canada defeated on penalties in the quarterfinals, was the biggest riser, jumping 17 spots to 37th. Czechia took the biggest fall, dropping 13 points to 47th after taking just one point in three games at the European Championships.

World Cup champion Argentina, which had a pair of 2-0 victories over Canada en route to claiming its record 16th Copa America title, remained at No. 1. France, Euro 2024 champion Spain, runner-up England and Brazil rounded out the top five.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 18, 2024.