Italy ends Brazil’s 55-month stay at No. 1
World Cup champions lead by 22 points; U.S. moves up to 28th
 Sandra Behne / Bongarts via Getty Images Italian national team celebrates after beating France to win the World Cup last year. |
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ZURICH, Switzerland - World Cup champion Italy ended Brazil’s 4½-year stay at the top of FIFA’s world soccer rankings Wednesday, taking the No. 1 spot for the first time since 1993.
The United States rose three places to 28th following last week’s 2-0 victory over Mexico.
Italy’s last game was in November. Brazil, had been No. 1 for 55 months, slipped to second place because of a 2-0 loss to Portugal last week.
Italy had 1,562 points, 22 more than Brazil, and 27 more than third-place Argentina. The rest of the top eight remained unchanged: No. 4 France followed by Germany, England, the Netherlands and Portugal.
The Czech Republic rose one spot to ninth, while Spain returned to the top 10 for the first time since October after a 1-0 victory at England.
Scotland rose six places to 20th, making the biggest jump in the top 25 along with No. 22 Ghana and No. 24 Uruguay.
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