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| Yonhap News |
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| The E-1 Championship (East Asian Cup) match between South Korea and Japan at Yongin Mir Stadium in Gyeonggi Province on the afternoon of the 15th. Coach Moriyasu is hugging coach Hong Myung-bo before the game. Yongin = Reporter Jeong Jae-geun cjg@sportschosun.com /2025.7.15/ |
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Japanese soccer, which received a disastrous report card in the A-match in September, is not expected to avoid a decline in ranking.
Japanese media 'Sponichi' is expected to drop two spots from 17th to 19th in the FIFA rankings on the 15th. 'He won three consecutive East Asian Football Confederation (EAFF) E-1 Championship (East Asian Cup) in July, but is likely to be overtaken by Switzerland and Senegal, which drew with Mexico and lost to the U.S. in the A-match series in September and gained many points in World Cup qualifying,' the report said.
Japan, led by head coach Hajime Moriyasu, drew 0-0 in the first friendly match against World Cup co-host Mexico in the U.S., the host of the 2026 North-China World Cup, and lost 0-2 in the second friendly match against the U.S. Criticism is mounting in Japan due to the sluggishness of not scoring a single goal in two games.
Soccer media 'CNF Zone' predicted Japan's ranking points to be 1,640 points after the A match day in September. It was cut by one point from the previous 1,641.23 points. On the other hand, Switzerland, which was 19th, is expected to drop Japan to 1648 points and jump two places to 17th, up about 13 points from 1635.08. Senegal, ranked 18th, is expected to maintain its 18th place by increasing about 10 points from 1635.1 points to 1,645 points.
Japan also fell two places from 15th to 17th in July. If 19th place is confirmed in the September ranking, which is scheduled to be announced on the 18th, it will be four steps down in four months. The 19th place is the lowest ranking in two years since September 2023. Iran, which competes with Japan for first and second place in Asia, is also expected to drop one spot to 21st.
Both teams still have room to make it to the World Cup Port 2. The World Cup, in which 48 countries participate, will be divided into four ports of 12 teams for each ranking and drawn on December 5. The three co-host countries (U.S., Mexico and Canada) and the top nine FIFA teams are Port 1, the 10th to 21st place is Port 2, the 22nd to 33rd place is Port 3, and the 34th to 45th place is Port 4. However, Mexico and the U.S. are expected to be ranked 14th and 16th, respectively, in this ranking, so chances are high that up to 23rd place will be included in Port 2. It should also be considered that the team that drops to the playoffs in the World Cup European qualifying round will be assigned to Port 4 unconditionally.
The Korean national soccer team is currently in the cut line (23rd place) of Port 2. South Korea is certain to secure 23rd place in September with one win and one draw in two consecutive games against the U.S. (2-0 wins) and Mexico (2-2 draws). Ranking points are expected to rise by about 6 points from 1587.08 to 1593.
It's not the stage to feel safe. It is five points behind Ecuador, which is expected to be ranked 24th (1,588 points). Ecuador caused a stir in beating Argentina in the A-match in September. He is also about 10 points behind Australia (1,583 points estimated) which is ranked 25th. The World Cup port allocation is based on the FIFA rankings of October. Only when the team achieves better-than-expected results in the two consecutive games against Brazil and Paraguay, which will be held in Korea in October, can it avoid a strong team in the World Cup as much as possible.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
