Crested Cranes Climb in FIFA Rankings Despite Inactivity

The Uganda senior women’s national football team, the Crested Cranes, have moved three places up in the latest FIFA Women’s World Rankings.

In the rankings released recently by FIFA, Uganda improved from 148th to 145th position despite not having played a match since last year.

The Crested Cranes last featured in June 2025, when they secured a bronze medal at the CECAFA Senior Women’s Championship. They have not played any matches since that competition.

Earlier in 2025, Uganda also participated in the WAFCON Qualifiers, where they were eliminated by Ethiopia on penalties.

Within the East African region, Tanzania remains the highest-ranked nation in 121st place. Kenya and Rwanda are ranked 128th and 169th respectively.

On the continental stage, Nigeria is the top-ranked African team, sitting 36th globally.

At the global level, Spain maintains its position as the number one team in women’s football, followed by United States, England, Germany, and Japan in second to fifth places respectively.

A total of 276 matches have been played worldwide since the previous rankings were published in December.

The Crested Cranes are expected to return to action during the next FIFA Women’s International Match Window scheduled for June 1–9, 2026, which will provide an opportunity to further improve their ranking.