ITALY SEEDED FOR WORLD CUP PLAY-OFF DRAW

Italy will be one of the four seeded teams in the draw for the European play-offs for next year’s World Cup after FIFA released their latest world rankings on Monday.

Switzerland, Croatia and Denmark will be the other seeded teams for the two-legged ties which will be played next month thanks to their positions in the rankings.

The unseeded sides for the draw, which will take place on Tuesday, will be Northern Ireland, Sweden, the Republic of Ireland and Greece.

FIFA will also use these latest rankings to determine the top-seeded nations when the draw for the World Cup group phase is made on December 1 in Moscow.

That means that, along with hosts Russia, the top seeds will be holders and number-one ranked Germany, Brazil, Portugal, Argentina, Belgium, Poland and France.

Leading nations to miss out on a top seeding include Spain, England and Uruguay.

Spain and Peru, who will go into a play-off against New Zealand for a place in Russia, both climb into the top 10 in the latest rankings.

Russia though slipped one place to 65th in the rankings, further diminishing expectations of their chances on home soil next year.

Latest FIFA ranking top 20 as of October 16:
1. Germany
2. Brazil
3. Portugal
4. Argentina
5. Belgium
6. Poland
7. France (+1)
8. Spain (+3)
9. Chile
10. Peru (+2)
11. Switzerland (-4)
12. England (+3)
13. Colombia (-3)
14. Wales (-1)
15. Italy (+2)
16. Mexico (-2)
17. Uruguay (-1)
18. Croatia
19. Denmark (+7)
20. Netherlands (+9)
Selected others
23. Northern Ireland (-3)
25. Sweden (-2)
26. Republic of Ireland (+8)
47. Greece
65. Russia (-1)

Comments

Insurgency: UN, FG launch $1bn 2021 Humanitarian Plan for North East

The United Nations and the Federal Government along with development partners have launched the 2021 Humanitarian Response Plan for the insurgency-ravaged northeastern part of Nigeria. The Humanitarian Response Plan represents a collective vision for humanitarian action in 2021, and requests US$1 billion to enable partners provide critical services to the 6.4 million most vulnerable people – from a pool of 8.7 million people in need of some form of humanitarian assistance in 2021 in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states. According to the UN, a combination of escalating conflict, displacement, and disruption to and loss of livelihoods due to COVID-19 restrictions, could lead to hunger for millions of Nigerians living in the north-east. The plan, therefore, is based on assessed needs and the realistic capacity of the United Nations and non-governmental organization partners to implement required actions. Speaking at the event, Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster M...

ABIA GOVT TAKE MADE IN ABA TO USA

As part of Governor Okezie Ikpeazu's campaign for promoting Made-in-Aba products, Abia State government and Abia State National Association, U.S.A. and North America, ASNA-NA,showcased the potentials and quality of Aba products to the international community during the association's national convention in New York City, USA. The event saw many designers, such as Chumar, and thousands of products shipped in from Aba on display, with models on the runway, adorning Aba-made designs. According to the Special Assistant to the Abia State Governor on Diaspora Matters, Mr. John Ndubuisi, all the outfits on display were sold out and orders placed, noting that Made-in-Aba designs will soon be competing in the American market. He added that with the clamour for restructuring, Abia State Government is working to grow the local economy, provide employment, empower skilled artisans and boost internally-generated revenue, stressing that Aba, dubbed The Japan of Africa for its entrepreneurial ...

9JATRAFFIC

Search This Blog