USMNT drop behind Mexico in FIFA rankings after winless September games; Lionel Messi's Argentina No. 1

The U.S. men's national team fell two spots in the latest edition of the FIFA rankings, slipping to 18th place after a winless run in September and landing behind 17th-place Mexico.

The latest batch of the FIFA rankings, released Thursday, comes after the USMNT's loss to 38th-ranked Canada and draw with 95th-ranked New Zealand this month and continue a steady slide down the rankings this summer. The U.S. were ranked 11th before the Copa America began, making them the third-highest ranked team at the expanded South American championship. A surprise group stage exit, coupled with the fact that they won just one of their last seven Games, has seen them slide seven places since late spring.

Mexico are now the highest-ranked team in Concacaf at 17, unchanged from July's rankings updates after notching a 3-0 win over New Zealand and a 0-0 draw with Canada this month, though their FIFA ranking slipped from 15th after their equally unexpected group stage elimination at the Copa America. This marks the first time Mexico are ranked ahead of the USMNT since October 2022, when the former were in 13th place and the latter were in 16th.

The USMNT will have a chance to reverse course in October, when they face Panama and Mexico in friendlies. Those will mark the first Games in charge for new head coach Mauricio Pochettino, who officially took the role last week and is expected to lead an ambitious turnaround as the team eyes a statement-making performance at the 2026 World Cup on home soil.

Elsewhere in the FIFA rankings, the top 15 remain unchanged after a fairly routine batch of games during the September international break. World Cup winners Argentina remain top of the FIFA rankings, a spot they have held since April 2023, while France have an equally lengthy grip on second place.