ZURICH, Switzerland, Nov. 22 (UPI) -- A victory over Switzerland has allowed Brazil to hold on to the world's No. 1 soccer ranking by FIFA, just ahead of Italy.
Italy, the World Cup champion, had pulled even with Brazil for No. 1 on the strength of a draw with Turkey, but Brazil later posted the victory over Switzerland to officials keep the top spot.
Argentina has moved into third place, knocking World Cup runner-up France to No. 4. The next three spots -- England, Germany and the Netherlands, respectively -- remain the same from October.
But Portugal moved up one spot to No. 8 and Nigeria jumped two to No. 9. The Czech Republic went from eighth to 10th.
The biggest gainer in the month was Russia, which improved its ranking to No. 23, 10 spots better than last month.
