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

EMIR OF KASTINA TELLS PRESIDENT BUHARI TO SIGN PEACE CORPS BILL

The Emir of Katsina, Abdulmumini Usman, has declared support for the Peace Corps bill passed by the National Assembly. The bill, which seeks to turn the Peace Corps, a non-government organisation, into a government paramilitary agency, has elicited mixed reactions from Nigerians. Proponents see it as an avenue to create jobs for thousands of youth while critics describe as a duplication of functions already being performed by existing agencies and creation of another bureaucracy at a time the country is finding it difficult to pay workers' salaries. The bill was opposed by existing military and security institutions in Nigeria and the Peace Corps leader Dickson Akoh is currently being prosecuted for alleged fraud. Apart from lawmakers, the bill is also supported by some prominent Nigerians including the Minister of Sports, Solomon Dalung, who also asked Mr. Buhari to sign to it. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the Katsina emir made a similar call on the president on Thursda...

AKEREDOLU, KEKEMEKE AND OTHERS BID MRS FAGUNWA GOODBYE

CBN Says It Can’t Reverse The Ban On ATM Card Use Abroad

The decision of Deposit Money Banks, DMBs, to place a restriction on the use of ATM cards abroad by bank customers is due to scarcity of foreign exchange, the CBN has said.The CBN said although it sympathizes with Nigerians for the sufferings they are experiencing in carrying out transactions abroad, it can't reverse the decision of DMBs and the CBN is in support of it as it would assist in reducing the pressure on the Naira.The Director, Monetary Policy Department, CBN, Mr. Moses Tule, explained that the restriction might continue until Nigeria could increase its foreign exchange earnings. He said if banks had not taken the decision to restrict the use of the ATM cards abroad, some of them would current be experiencing challenges meeting the overseas demand of their customers.May GOD help Us.. AMEN!!!

9JATRAFFIC

Search This Blog