MBABANE – Sihlangu’s recent defeat to Eritrea has come with a hefty fine from FIFA’s ranking system.
The unranked beat Eswatini 2-0 in the first leg of the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) first leg of the preliminary round played four days ago away in Morocco.
However, the shock defeat is not just a blow to the nation’s pride, but it is a statistical setback that is already haunting the nation in the upcoming rankings.
As the International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA) Men’s Break has not concluded, the unofficial rankings signal a two-place drop published in the global motherbody’s website.
Eswatini has dropped from the January 19, 2026 rank of 159 to 161 in the standings ahead of final and official ones to be released on Wednesday.
The away defeat, as per FIFA website, demonstrates that the upset saw 16.11 points docked from the kingdom, taking it down from 1011 to 994.40 points.
However, the temporary standing could possibly change if Eswatini casts out its demons and beats Eritrea tomorrow during the return match.
The aggregate winner will then get a ticket straight to next AFCON Group Qualifiers which begin in September.
Furthermore, the temporary ranks present themselves as the worst in a decade, with the lowest rank having been recorded back on June 4, 2015, which was 162.
Worth noting is that, under the current FIFA Elo-based Ranking System, the cost of losing to a team with no global ranking is the maximum penalty a nation can incur. While a loss to a heavyweight like Morocco or Senegal would result in a negligible points deduction, falling to a team that FIFA technically considers bottom-tier triggers a huge exchange of points.
*Full article available on Pressreader*
Leave a comment