Spain Holds Onto No. 1 While the U.S. Women Stay Right on Their Heels

Spain is still sitting at the top of the FIFA Women's World Rankings, and the United States is still chasing right behind them at No. 2. The latest rankings dropped on Tuesday, and it's the first official update since December, so there's plenty of movement to unpack.

The Top 10 Stays Loaded

Spain took over the No. 1 spot back in August and they're not letting it go. Even after taking an away loss to England last week, they stayed put at the top. England made some noise though, jumping up one spot and swapping places with Germany, who fell to No. 3. The rest of the top 10 reads like a who's who: Japan, Brazil, France, Sweden, Canada, and the Netherlands round out the elite tier.

The Big Movers and Shakers

Japan made the most eye-catching climb, jumping three places to land at No. 5 after the U.S. women's friendly series earlier this month where they split results with the Americans, winning once and losing twice. On the flip side, Sweden took the hardest fall in the top 10, dropping three spots down to No. 8. Korea DPR fell completely out of the top 10, sliding two spots to No. 11 after making the cut last time around.

A total of 276 international fixtures have been played since the last rankings release, with qualifying matches for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup in Brazil driving a lot of the movement. One small note: the British Virgin Islands dropped out of the rankings entirely after going four years without playing a match, bringing the total number of ranked teams down to 197.

What's Next

The next rankings update comes on June 16, so there's still plenty of time for teams to climb or crash depending on how their matches shake out. Spain's hold on No. 1 might seem comfortable, but with England lurking and the U.S. staying right there at No. 2, this is far from settled.

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.