The FIFA World Rankings are entirely separate from the UEFA Coefficient rankings. Scotland’s national team performance does not affect the nation’s UEFA Coefficient, just as the European exploits of Celtic, Rangers et al do not impact Scotland’s FIFA World ranking.
For the UEFA Coefficient, every win in the league phase awards the same number of points across all three UEFA club competitions - regardless of the strength of opposition. For example, Liverpool earned the same number of points for beating Real Madrid in the Champions League as Chelsea did for beating Noah by a boatload in the Conference League.
In contrast, the FIFA World Ranking employs a more complex calculation with several factors determining the points on offer. Each match has a predetermined number of points at stake. A win adds these points to a country’s total, while the loser would then have the exact same amount subtracted from their total. In a draw, the higher-ranked team loses points and the lower-ranked team gains that same number.
Key factors in this calculation include the importance of the fixture - for example there are far more points on offer for a World Cup quarter-final than for a friendly match - and the ranking of the opposition. For instance, a Scotland loss to Argentina, the world’s top-ranked team, would result in a much smaller points deduction than a defeat to the lowest ranked team in the world - San Marino in 210th. Similarly, drawing against a higher-ranked team, such as the recent 0-0 with Portugal, rewarded Scotland with points at Portugal’s expense.
The FIFA Men’s World Ranking calculation equation, where ‘Pbefore’ = the country’s points before the match, ‘I’ = importance of the fixture, ‘W’ is the result of the match and ‘We' is the expected result of the match.
Scotland’s impressive recent run of three consecutive victories - all against teams ranked higher than us - has boosted our FIFA ranking, marking a significant rebound following our 2024 tumble.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF SCOTLAND’S RANKING
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