Lionel Messi's Argentina now have reclaimed the No.1 spot in the FIFA World Rankings after 6 years. After their friendly wins against Panama (2-0) and Curaçao (7-0), they have now dethroned Brazil from the top spot in the ranking. Argentina were ranked No.1 last in March, 2017. Brazil, who lost against Morocco (2-1) in the recently concluded friendlies, dropped two spots from the top.
Current FIFA World Rankings. Image: FIFA
Meanwhile, after their back-to-back wins in UEFA EURO 2024 qualifying against the Netherlands (4-0) and Republic of Ireland (1-0), France have moved up to the number two position in the FIFA World Rankings. There was not much movement in the top 10 of the rankings. In fact, the only movement in the Top 20 of the ranking was the swapping of places by Senegal (18th, plus 1) and Denmark (19th, minus 1).
Central African Republic was the most improved team in the rankings. Their two huge wins against Madagascar, who were 30 places above them in the rankings at that time, helped them gain 10 spots up in the ranking. Currently, they are now at No. 122 in the FIFA World Rankings while teams like Namibia (106th, plus 7) and Malaysia (138th, plus 7) made some significant moves as well.
Indian team celebrating after their win in the Tri-Nation Series, 2023. Image: News 18
Team India made a move as well in the world rankings. Post their triumph in the Tri-Nation series, India now have moved up five places in the global ranking. Sunil Chhetri's team was ranked 106 in 2022 and now with this move, they are at 101 in the FIFA World Rankings.
Sunil Chhetri with his recent hat-trick against Kerala Blasters FC, became the only third player to score three ISL hat-tricks. Here are the players with the most ISL hat-tricks in their careers.
Scoring a hat-trick is considered one of the most significant achievements of a striker in football. In football leagues worldwide, we get to see the top-level strikers achieving multiple hat-tricks in their careers.
In the Indian Super League, Nigerian striker Bartholomew Ogbeche has the record for scoring the most number of hattricks in the league. With Indian legend, Sunil Chhetri giving him a tough competition in the table, we present you players with the ISL stats of players with the most hat-tricks in Indian Super League history.
Stiven Mendoza, Dudu Omagbemi, Coro, Marcelinho, and Modou Sougou have scored two hattricks in their ISL careers.
Stiven Mendoza scored two ISL hat-tricks in just 15 league games.
Mendoza, the Colombian left winger played for Chennaiyin FC on two stints; once in the 2013/14 season and again in the 2014/15 season. He scored 15 goals in 22 games and netted twice in three ISL playoff matches.
He scored his first ISL hat-trick against FC Goa in Chennaiyin’s opening game in 2015. Mendoza scored his second hattrick, against Kerala Blasters in a 4-1 win.
Dudu after his hat-trick for FC Goa in 2015.
Dudu, the Nigerian striker is one of the known faces in Indian football, having played for East Bengal and Salgaocar FC in the I-League. However, he played for FC Pune City, FC Goa and Chennaiyin FC in ISL.
He scored his first ISL hat-trick against Mumbai City FC while playing for FC Goa, in 2015. His last hat-trick in the league came against Northeast United FC in a 3-3 draw for Chennaiyin FC in the 2016/17 season.
Coro is the only player to score hat-tricks in back-to-back ISL games.
Coro, the Spaniard spent three seasons in India with FC Goa from 2017-18 to 2019-20. In 50 ISL league games, he scored a stunning 47 goals while contributing 16 assists. He had scored back-to-back hattricks in his first season, one against Bengaluru FC, followed by one against Kerala Blasters.
Marcelinho scored a hat-trick for FC Pune City in 2017. Image | Scroll
Marcelinho, the Brazilian winger started his ISL career with Delhi Dynamos in 2016, joined Pune City in 2017 and continued playing in India for Hyderabad FC, Odisha FC, ATK Mohun Bagan and NEUFC.
He scored one hat-trick against FC Goa for Delhi Dynamos and another against NEUFC for FC Pune City in 2017.
Moduo after a hat-trick against ATK in 2018-19 season. Image | MCFC
Modou Sougou, the Senegalese right winger played for Mumbai City FC in the 2018/19 and 2019/20 seasons. He scored four goals in a match against Kerala Blasters in the 2018-19 season and scored his last ISL hat-trick against ATK in the same season.
3 hattricks | Iain Hume and Sunil Chhetri
Hume after his hat-trick against Mumbai City FC. Image | India.com
One of the earliest stars of the Indian Super League, the Canadian striker, who had played for clubs like Leicester City, joined Kerala Blasters in the first season. In 2015/16, he moved to Atletico de Kolkata and won the league in 2016. Later, he rejoined KBFC, before finishing with Pune City.
His fast ISL hat-trick came for Atletico Day, Kolkata against Mumbai City FC. His other hat-trick for ATK came against FC Pune City in the 2015-16 season.
Hume’s third hattrick was for Kerala Blasters against Delhi Dynamos in the 2017-18 season.
Sunil Chhetri is now the oldest player to score an ISL hat-trick. Image | ISL via X
Like Hume, Indian football legend, Sunil Chhetri has also scored 3 ISL hattricks in his career. The former India captain has scored the number of goals in the league’s history.
Chhetri became the first Indian player to score a hat-trick in ISL when he scored against Northeast United FC in the 2015/16 season for Mumbai City FC.
In the 2017-18 season, Chhetri scored his second hat-trick against FC Pune City for Bengaluru FC. His latest hat-trick came against Kerala Blasters in 4-2 win for BFC. With this hat-trick, he has also become the oldest player to score a hat-trick in ISL history at 40 years and 126 days old.
Bartholomew Ogbeche has scored the most ISL hat-tricks. Image | ISL
The former Nigerian striker is one of the most successful footballers in ISL history. In 2018, he started his career in India with Northeast United and later moved to clubs like Kerala Blasters, Mumbai City FC and Hyderabad FC.
Bartholomew Ogbeche won the ISL Cup twice with Mumbai City FC and Hyderabad FC and the league once with Mumbai City FC.
His first ISL hat-trick was against Chennaiyin FC for NEUFC in the 2018-19 season. Chennaiyin became his favourite opponent when he scored his second ISL hat-trick against the Kerala Blasters in the 2019-20 season.
Answer: Bartholomew Ogbeche has scored the most ISL hat-tricks till now (4).
2. Who was the first player to score an ISL hat-trick?
Answer: André Moritz was the first player to score an ISL hat-trick. He scored the hat-trick for Mumbai City FC against FC Pune City in the 2014-15 season.
3. Who was the first Indian player to score an ISL hat-trick?
Answer: Sunil Chhetri became the first Indian player to score a hat-trick in ISL when he scored against Northeast United FC in the 2015/16 season for Mumbai City FC.
4. Who is the oldest player to score an ISL hat-trick?
Answer: At the age of 40 years and 126 days, Sunil Chhetri is the oldest player to score an ISL hat-trick.
5. Who is the only player to score four goals in an ISL match?
Answer: Modou Sougou is still the only player in ISL history to score four goals in a game. He achieved the feat while playing for Mumbai City FC in the 2018-19 season against Kerala Blasters.
Lionel Messi wins MLS MVP Award - Presented to him by his family
Lionel Messi continues to win laurels in the football industry with his latest addition being the MVP of the MLS. This award will cast more spotlight on Inter Miami and attract more players to the team.
In his first full season in the MLS, Argentine forward Lionel Messi claimed the prestigious MVP award, which is given to the best-performing player in the League for that season.
Despite missing 15 matches due to injuries and international commitments, Messi led MLS in goal contributions with 20 goals and 16 assists in 19 appearances. He became the third player in the league's history to record at least 20 goals and 15 assists in a single season, following Carlos Vela (2019) and Sebastian Giovinco (2015). This achievement also marks the first time an Inter Miami player has won the award.
Inter Miami had a dominant MLS regular season, setting a record with 74 points, but was eliminated in the first round of the playoffs by Atlanta United. Messi joined the team in June 2023 after departing Paris Saint-Germain.
Messi secured 38.4% of the average vote, edging out Hernandez, who received 33.7%. The top five was completed by Portland Timbers midfielder Evander (9.2%), DC United's Christian Benteke (7.1%), and Messi's Inter Miami teammate Luis Suárez (2.2%).
Messi, Busquets, and Alba led Inter Miami to victory in the Leagues Cup, a competition featuring MLS teams against Mexico's Liga MX, earning the club its first-ever trophy.
In the 2024 season, Inter Miami excelled during the regular season, claiming the Supporters' Shield as the team with the highest points across both conferences. All these achievements helped propel Messi to win this award.
Odisha FC's star striker and the third highest goal scorer of Indian Super League (ISL) history, Roy Krishna has been sidelined for the remainder of the season due to a grade 3 ACL injury he sustained during the game against Hyderabad FC last week.
The Fijian striker had already scored three goals this season in ISL for the Juggernauts and has been one of the most impressive players in the league's history since he joined in 2019. He joined Odisha FC in 2023 after spending fruitful years with Bengaluru FC, ATK and ATK Mohun Bagan before joining the 2023 Super League winners.
Roy was one of the key clogs in Sergio Lobera's plan and without him, they would have a gigantic boot to fill in. However, Lobera feels Roy's absence will not hurt the team that much as the team is focused on the challenges ahead.
"It's sad news for the team. Roy is not just an incredible player but also a fantastic human being. We’ll miss him on the pitch, but I’m sure he’ll continue to support us off it. He’s one of the best professionals I’ve worked with, and I wish him a speedy recovery," Lpbera stated via an official press release by Odisha FC.
"It’s not easy when you have just two training sessions, primarily focused on recovery and compensation. But we don’t make excuses. This is football, and we need to adapt. It’s another challenge for us to overcome, and I believe we’re ready," he added.
Odisha FC are currently 3rd in the ISL standings with 15 points from 10 matches after returning to winning ways against an in-form Bengaluru FC with a 4-1 win at home. Next, they will face Mumbai City FC on 5th December at Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneshwar.
FIFA Club World Cup 2025: FIFA has revealed the Pots for the Group Stage Draw
FIFA has reportedly confirmed the seedings for the Group Stage Draw for the upcoming FIFA Club World Cup 2025. The draw will take place on 5 December 2024.
FIFA has revealed the seedings for the Group Stage Draw for the FIFA Club World Cup 2025. The 32 qualified clubs will know their fate on 5 December 2024, as the groups and the opponents will be decided for each participating team. However, According to DailyMail, FIFA has revealed the pots according to the seedings ahead of the draw on Thursday.
The expanded FIFA Club World Cup is scheduled to take place from June 15 to July 13, 2025, and will be held in various stadiums in the United States.
FIFA Club World Cup 2025 Group Stage Draw details
Date: 5 December 2024
Time: 11:30 PM IST
Streaming: FIFA.com, FIFA+ App and Supporting Channels
Pots and Group Stage Draw
32 clubs have been divided into 4 pots comprising 8 clubs in each pot. Each group at the Club World Cup will consist of one team from Pot 1, a team from Pot 2, one from Pot 3, and one from Pot 4. This is how the Group Stage Draw will decide the potential opponent for the clubs on Thursday.
The Group Stage will have eight groups, consisting of 4 teams in each group playing a single game in a round-robin format. The top two teams from each group will earn qualification for the Round of 16 and after the quarter-finals and semi-finals are over, two teams will meet each other in the final set to be played on 13th July 2025.
I-League broadcast: Sony Sports Network will telecast the matches on TV from second round
The TV broadcasting issues of the I-League have been resolved as Sony Sports Network is set to telecast the I-League matches on TV from the second round.
Sony Sports Network is set to acquire the TV broadcasting rights of the I-League 2024-25 following the extensive feud between the I League clubs association and AIFF.
SSEN acquired the OTT rights before and they will continue to stream the matches on its official app whereas Sony Sports Network Channels will broadcast the matches on TV.
The I-League is about to kick-off from today but. the dispute between I-League clubs association and AIFF has delayed the TV broadcasting. Matches scheduled for first round will not be telecasted on TV but football fans can watch the I-League games live on TV on and from 29 November 2024.
The I-League clubs association headed by Delhi FC owner Ranjit Bajaj announced in a letter to AIFF yesterday that the 12 I-League clubs have decided to boycott the league and they will not play unless the broadcasting issues are resolved. Shrachi Sports' venture SSEN also announced yesterday that fans can watch the matches 'only' on SSEN app which added fuel to the fire.
However, in an overnight development, AIFF has finalized Sony as the TV broadcasting partner for the I-League 2024-25 and the clubs expect that over 100 of the scheduled 132 matches will be telecasted live on TV.
Participating clubs will reportedly pay 12 Lakh rupees each to the Sony Sports Network to cover the broadcasting costs which does not include the participation fees of 7 Lakhs paid to the AIFF.
The uncertainty regarding the broadcasting issues have finally been resolved and the I-League 2024-25 will start according to the announced fixtures. Sreenidi Deccan will take on Gokulam Kerala in a blockbuster opening game set to kick off today at 4:30 PM IST. Later today, Inter Kashi will face newly promoted Sporting Club Bengaluru in the second match of the opening day, scheduled to start today at 7:00 PM IST.
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