Morocco enters 2023 Africa Cup of Nations as highest ranked team

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Morocco will go for next month’s TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations, Cote d’Ivoire 2023, as the highest-ranked side in the tournament following Thursday’s release of the FIFA Rankings.

The Atlas Lions maintained their leadership position on the continent just three weeks before the tournament starts in Cote d’Ivoire.

This means they will go into Africa’s flagship sports competition as the highest-ranked team for the ranking that is released every month.

It also means Morocco finish the year by maintaining their position as the leading African football nation as there were minimal changes in the last FIFA rankings for the year.

It is a massive confidence boost for the Atlas Lions for the upcoming TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations who were closely followed by Senegal and Tunisia.

Algeria, Egypt, Nigeria, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Mali and Burkina Faso complete the top ten countries.

This ranking provides an opportunity to reflect on the statistical performance of the continent’s teams, with a total of 231 matches played throughout the year.

Among these, 91 were friendly matches, 88 were related to CAF competition qualifiers, and 52 were for FIFA competition qualifications.

Algeria and Madagascar emerged as the most active national teams on the continent, each participating in 16 matches. 

The full list includes a total of 53 African nations, with Eritrea not ranked due to inactivity for over four years.

Morocco’s consistent performance secured its top position in the continental rankings, reflecting a year of intense football activity across Africa. 

As the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations, Cote d’Ivoire 2023, draws closer, football enthusiasts will eagerly anticipate how the ranking reflect on their teams’ performance in Cote d’Ivoire.

FIFA Rankings for Africa for December 2023

AlgeriaCountryGlobal Position
1Morocco13
2Senegal20
3Tunisia28
4Algaria30
5Egypte 33
6Nigeria42
7Cameroon46
8Côte d’Ivoire49
9Mali51
10Burkina Faso57
11Ghana61
12South Africa66
13DR Congo67
14Cape Verde73
15Guinea80
16Gabon82
17Zambie 84
18Equatorial Guinea88
19Uganda92
20Benin97
21Guinea Bissau103
22Mauritania105
23Madagascar109
24Kenya110
25Mozambique111
26Congo112
27Namibia115
28Angola 117
29Togo118
30Comoros119
31Libya120
32Tanzania121
33Malawi123
34Zimbabwe124
35Gambia126
36Sierra Leone127
37Sudan128
38Niger129
39Central African Republic131
40Rwanda133
41Burundi139
42Ethiopia144
43Botswana145
44Lesotho148
45Eswatini149
46Liberia153
47South Sudan166
48Mauritius177
49Chad181
50Sao Tomé and Principe191
51Djibouti192
52Somalia198
53Seychelles199