FIFA Make Major Spain Announcement after Threat to Boycott 2026 World Cup
FIFA have made a major announcement regarding Spain after the country threatened to boycott the World Cup in 2026.
The global governing body today released the updated world rankings for the men's national teams, with Spain rising to the top spot.
Luis de la Fuente's side impressed in recent World Cup qualifiers, beating Bulgaria, before thrashing Turkey 6-0. The EURO 2024 winners have been awarded with the recognition of currently being the best team in the world.
Argentina, who previously held the top sport, dropped to third following a recent defeat to Ecuador. Despite the setback, the World Cup winners have dominated South American qualifying, as they prepare for Lionel Messi's final international tournament next summer.
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France have also climbed the rankings, moving from third to second and Didier Deschamps' side will once again be among the favourites for the tournament. England, who boast a perfect qualifying record after five games, remain the fourth in the rankings.
Why did Spain threaten to boycott the World Cup?
Spanish government officials warned they would pull out of next summer's World Cup if Israel qualify for the tournament.
Israel are currently third in their group with nine points from five games, behind Norway and Italy. With trips to both Norway and Italy in October, they still may finish second and potentially secure a play-off spot depending on results.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has called for Israel to be excluded from sporting competitions.
He said: "Israel cannot continue to use any international platform to whitewash its image."
A recent UN commission of inquiry said there are grounds to believe that four of five genocidal acts under international law, have been carried out by Israel in Gaza. Israel's foreign ministry responded by rejecting the report, describing it as 'distorted and false'.
More than 65,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.
What is UEFA's ban against Russia?
Many within the sporting world have called for Israel to face a ban from international football, in a similar manner to Russia.Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, both UEFA and FIFA suspended the national team and Russian clubs from competitions.
Russia appealed against the ban, but it was dismissed.
Their last appearance at a global competition was the 2018 World Cup, as they were barred from the 2022 World Cup and next summer's tournament. UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin has spoken about the ongoing ban, expressing sympathy for the athletes.
He said: "The ban for Russian teams is, I think, three and a half years. Did the war stop? It didn’t. So for now, I don’t know.
"I have to say that with the situation in Russia and Ukraine, there was a super strong political pressure.
"Now it’s more a pressure of the civil society than politicians, because politicians are obviously, when it comes to wars and victims, very pragmatic.
"I cannot say what will happen. There are talks about everything, but me personally, I’m against kicking the athletes out."
Topics: FIFA, Spain, Russia, UEFA, FIFA World Cup
James Taylor