CAF Releases Latest Club Rankings, With Only One Nigerian Team in Africa’s Top 75
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has unveiled its latest continental club rankings, NigeriaSoccernet.com reports.
Once again, only two Nigerian teams appear in the top 75, a development that further highlights the worrying decline of the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL) on the African stage. Egyptian giants Al Ahly retained their position at No. 1, followed closely by South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns in second place. Rivers United remain Nigeria’s highest-ranked club in 24th position, while former African champions Enyimba sit 35th.
The rankings, released ahead of the new CAF Champions League and CAF Confederation Cup seasons, are compiled using a five-year performance cycle, with recent results carrying greater weight. This explains why Rivers United, who have posted stronger showings in continental competitions in recent years, sit above Enyimba despite the latter’s history and pedigree.
However, the overall data paints a troubling picture for Nigerian club football. Rivers United remains the only NPFL side to reach the CAF Champions League group stage in the last eight years, and in the newly published standings, no other Nigerian club makes the top 75.
The top end of the African rankings continues to be dominated by teams with consistent success in CAF competitions or those who participated in the inaugural FIFA Club World Cup hosted in the United States. Occupying the third to tenth spots are Espérance Sportive de Tunis of Tunisia, RS Berkane of Morocco, Simba SC of Tanzania, Egypt’s Pyramids FC and Zamalek SC, Morocco’s Wydad AC, USM Alger of Algeria, and CR Belouizdad, also of Algeria.
CAF awards ranking points based on progression in its two major club competitions. Champions League winners receive six points, runners-up take five, and semi-finalists earn four. In the Confederation Cup, the champions receive five points, runners-up get four, and semi-finalists collect three.
The release of the rankings comes shortly after Rivers United suffered a 3–0 defeat to Pyramids FC in their Champions League group-stage opener, further fueling concerns over the current competitiveness of Nigerian clubs on the continental front.
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