Morocco remained Africa’s top-ranked team while Ivory Coast dropped three places in the latest FIFA world rankings released on Thursday.

The Atlas Lions stay 13th globally after extending their unbeaten run last month. A 3-0 win over Liberia and a 1-1 draw with Ivory Coast kept Morocco top of the continent ahead of Senegal. Senegal also held firm at 20th globally and second in Africa thanks to their 1-0 friendly win over Cameroon.

Algeria’s 33rd place worldwide is their highest position since June after recent steady improvement under coach Djamel Belmadi. The Desert Foxes beat Cape Verde 5-1 before drawing 1-1 with Egypt in September to close within four points of Tunisia in third. But there was disappointment for the next Africa Cup of Nations hosts Cote d’Ivoire who dropped three places to 52nd in the world and ninth in Africa.

Their 1-1 draws at home to Morocco and South Africa proved costly for the Elephants with the AFCON on home soil fast approaching. The rankings saw Mali climb two spots to 47th globally after wins over South Sudan and Congo, while Burkina Faso jumped to 56th.

Cape Verde’s heavy loss in Algeria contributed to a three-place fall to 74th, matched by Uganda’s slide to 90th globally.. But Equatorial Guinea reached a new high of 91st worldwide after winning their opening AFCON 2023 qualifier against Botswana.

With mixed results across Africa last month, the latest rankings highlighted the continent’s continued unpredictability and competitiveness.