Up until the early 1990s, the level of Chinese and Japanese teams was similar. China was a little ahead of Japan when it came to physical performance. Saudi Arabia, a powerhouse in the Middle East with South Korea, competed for the top spot in Asia, followed by other Middle Eastern teams such as Iran. China struggled to enter the top class in Asia.
In the FIFA rankings released on May 17, 1994, China was ranked 53rd. It was ranked the third highest in Asia. It was ranked the third in Asia after Saudi Arabia (35th) and Korea (37th). It beat Japan, which fell to 54th, and made it into the Asian semifinals. At the time, Australia was not a member of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). 토토사이트 순위
About 30 years later, China has fallen to the second rank in Asia. It has rarely made progress, hovering around the 70th to 80th ranks in the FIFA rankings. Although it made it to the finals of the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, it was a “sparkle.” As China kept losing ground to Korea, it felt “symptomatic” and it has been a long time since China allowed it to overtake Japan. It was inferior to Middle Eastern powerhouses, and is also struggling to compete with Central and Southeast Asian teams.
China lost 1-2 against Hong Kong on Sunday (Korea time). It kneeled down to Hong Kong, ranked 150th in the FIFA rankings, in an exhibition match in preparation for the 2023 AFC Qatar Asian Cup that will kick off on Sunday. Except for the penalty shootout loss, it lost to Hong Kong for the first time in 39 years. It suffered another shock defeat after losing 0-2 in a friendly match against Oman on Dec. 30 last year. The prospects for the Asian Cup are bleak.
In the FIFA rankings released on Dec. 21, 2023, China ranked 79th. In Asia, where the team achieved upward leveling, it fell behind the top 10. It lost face as it slumped to 11th place in Asia. Japan, on the other hand, ranked 17th. He maintained his top ranking and continued his hope of making the top 10 in Asia. Behind Japan are Iran, Korea, Australia, and Saudi Arabia.
Japan is showing remarkable growth. Japan, which launched the J-League of Japan professional soccer in 1993 and successfully hosted the World Cup to seek further development, has surely taken a step up. It has grown to the point where it threatened Korea and solidified its position as the strongest team in Asia in the 2000s. Starting with the Asian Cup title held in his country in 1992, he conquered the top of the Asian Cup in 2000, 2004, and 2011 to usher in a heyday.
It has made another leap forward recently. It surprised the world by advancing to the round of 16 tournaments by beating Germany and Spain at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. It recently had nine consecutive A matches. It had a landslide 4-1 victory against Germany in a return match, and crushed Turkiye 4-2 in an away match in Europe. It crushed Canada (4-1) and Tunisia (2-0) before securing a landslide 5-0 victory against Asian teams. It is considered as a “de-Asian team.”
For about 30 years, China has fallen further, and Japan has advanced to the point where it is close to world level. China launched the Super League, but due to excessive investment and poor management, the team lost its competitive edge. On the contrary, Japan gradually grew with the successful settlement of the J-League and implementation of the national team’s long-term plans. China and Japan, which looked similar 30 years ago, have seen their current status expand noticeably.