Dec 14,2024
The Republic of Ireland have dropped one place in the FIFA world rankings following their Euro 2025 play-off defeat to Wales.
The team - who jettisoned Eileen Gleeson as head coach this week - have slipped to 25th. Having previously ranked in the thirties, the women's national team have been hovering around the mid twenties for the past two years thanks to their World Cup qualification last year and strong campaigns under Vera Pauw.
Gleeson guided Ireland to a flawless Nations League campaign after taking the reins following Pauw's exit in the wake of the 2023 World Cup.
Earlier this year, the Girls in Green lost five of their six games in an extremely tough Euro 2025 qualification group that included England, France and Sweden – three of the top six-ranked countries in the world.
They had no issues in achieving a 9-0 aggregate Euros play-off semi-final win over a poor Georgia side, but the loss in the final to Wales, ranked five places lower than Ireland, was a massive blow.
Having drawn 1-1 in Cardiff, Gleeson’s team were beaten 2-1 in the return leg at Aviva Stadium as their dreams of reaching a first ever European Championships went up in smoke.
Surprisingly, Wales have also dropped a place, despite their historic finals qualification, slipping to 30th.
The United States, Spain and Germany make up the top three, with England slipping to fourth and Sweden rounding out the top five.
