Spain go top of world rankings

Spain climbed to the top of the FIFA world rankings today, displacing Brazil who had led since July.

Spain, who had been in second position, beat Argentina and Austria in friendlies in the last week to take their tally of successive wins to eight.

Brazil's 1-0 victory over England and 2-0 triumph against Oman carried less weight under the complex points system.

Netherlands and Italy remained unchanged in third and fourth respectively while Portugal jumped five spots to fifth.

Africa's highest-ranked team are 11th-placed Cameroon and United States (14th) are the top side from the CONCACAF region. Australia (21st) lead the way among the Asian confederation.