Most Improved FIFA Rankings - Oct 2012 to Oct 2013

Current Top 100 teams that have improved 15 or more FIFA ranking positions in the past year (October 2012 to October 2013)

72 - Cuba (146 to 74)
51 - Iceland (97 to 46)
49 - Moldova (145 to 96)
44 - United Arab Emirates (116 to 72)
42 - Costa Rica (73 to 31)

39 - Burkina Faso (91 to 52)
32 - Honduras (66 to 34)
30 - Nigeria (63 to 33)
27 - Northern Ireland (117 to 90)
26 - Albania (84 to 58)

26 - Armenia (64 to 38)
25 - Belgium (30 to 5)
25 - Finland (88 to 63)
24 - Dominican Republic (102 to 78)
23 - Azerbaijan (111 to 88)

23 - Botswana (121 to 98)
23 - Ethiopia (118 to 95)
22 - Ukraine (42 to 20)
21 - Scotland (56 to 35)
19 - USA (32 to 13)

18 - Macedonia (104 to 86)
18 - Togo (93 to 75)
17 - Romania (46 to 29)
16 - Israel (82 to 66)
16 - Congo DR (103 to 87)
15 - Uzbekistan (70 to 55)

FIFA Best/Worst Ranking - October 2013

Nations currently at their best or worst all-time ranking position in the October 2013 FIFA Rankings.

Best Ranking
1 - Spain
5 - Belgium
38 - Armenia
78 - Dominican Republic
88 - Azerbaijan
137 - Philippines
171 - Guam

Worst Ranking
60 - Republic of Ireland
111 - Canada
177 - Yemen
204 - Macau

FIFA Confederation Ranking Comparison - October 2013

Comparing FIFA Confederations using the average FIFA ranking of the top 5 teams from each region.

Top 5 Avg. - Confederation (+/- September)

4.6 - Europe (+/-0.0)
1 - Spain
2 - Germany
5 - Belgium
7 - Switzerland
8 - Netherlands

7.2 - South America (+0.4)
3 - Argentina
4 - Colombia
6 - uruguay
11 - Brazil
12 - Chile

27.6 - CONCACAF (+0.8)
13 - USA
24 - Mexico
31 - Costa Rica
34 - Honduras
36 - Panama

29.2 - Africa (-0.2)
17 - Cote d'Ivoire
23 - Ghana
32 - Algeria
33 - Nigeria
41 - Mali

52.2 - Asia (-0.6)
44 - Japan
49 - Iran
55 - Uzbekistan
56 - South Korea
57 - Australia

139.6 - Oceania (-8.8)
79 - New Zealand
126 - New Caledonia
144 - Tahiti
171 - Solomon Islands
178 - Samoa

Armenia Premier League Club Logos

Alashkert FC

FC Ararat Yerevan

FC Banants

FC Pyunik

Shirak FC

Ulisses FC

Gandzasar FC NGO

FC Mika

Brazilians in European Leagues 2013/2014

The number of Brazilian players in every top division European league.

113 - Portugal
47 - Italy
38 - Ukraine
35 - Cyprus

29 - Malta
25 - Romania
24 - Azerbaijan
23 - Russia
20 - France

19 - Bulgaria
19 - Greece
18 - Spain
17 - Turkey
16 - Germany

14 - England
13 - Israel

13 - Moldova

13 - Sweden
11 - Hungary

9 - Belgium
9 - Luxembourg
9 - Poland
8 - Finland
7 - Slovakia
5 - Slovenia

4 - Albania
4 - Austria
4 - Netherlands
4 - Switzerland

3 - Armenia
3 - Denmark
3 - Kazakhstan
3 - Serbia

2 - Bosnia/Herzegovina
2 - Croatia
2 - Estonia
2 - Norway

1 - Andorra

1 - Czech Republic

1 - Faroe Islands

1 - Georgia

1 - Latvia
1 - Macedonia
1 - Scotland

0 - Belarus

0 - Iceland

0 - Lithuania

0 - Montenegro

0 - Northern Ireland
0 - Republic of Ireland
0 - San Marino
0 - Wales

MLS Players with Dual Nationality

Chicago Fire
Bakary Soumaré - Mali/France
Jalil Anibaba - USA/Nigeria
Jeff Larentowicz - USA/Poland
Dilly Duka - USA/Albania
Quincy Amarikwa - USA/Nigeria

Chivas USA
Jaime Frias - USA/Mexico
Carlos Bocanegra - USA/Mexico
Steve Purdy - El Salvador/USA
Carlos Borja - Mexico/USA
Ante Jazic - Canada/Croatia
Emilio Orozco - USA/Mexico
Daniel Antunez - Mexico/USA
Gabriel Farfan - USA/Mexico
Bryan de la Fuente - USA/Mexico
Jorge Villafana - USA/Mexico
Eric Avila - USA/Mexico
Carlos Alvarez - USA/Mexico
Julio Morales - Mexico/USA

Colorado Rapids
Steward Ceus - Haiti/USA
Shane O'Neill - USA/Ireland
Nick LaBrocca - USA/Italy
Edson Buddle - USA/Jamaica
Kamani Hill - USA/Trinidad and Tobago
Danny Mwanga - DR Congo/USA

Columbus Crew
Andy Gruenebaum - USA/Israel
Glauber - Brazil/Italy
Konrad Warzycha - USA/Poland
Agustin Viana - Uruguay/Italy
Matias Sanchez - Argentina/Italy
Kevan George - Trinidad and Tobago/USA
Justin Meram - USA/Iraq

FC Dallas
Ugo Ihemelu - USA/Nigeria
George John - USA/Greece
Micel - Brazil/Italy
Peter Luccin - France/Martinique
Ramón Núñez - Honduras/USA
Kenny Cooper - USA/England

DC United
Dejan Jakovic - Canada/Serbia
Dennis Iapichino - Switzerland/Italy
John Thorrington - USA/South Africa
Dwayne de Rosario - Canada/Guyana
Luis Silva - USA/Mexico
Nick DeLeon - USA/Trinidad and Tobago
Michael Seaton - Jamaica/USA
Conor Doyle - USA/Ireland

Houston Dynamo
Erich Marscheider - USA/Austria
Eric Brunner - USA/Germany
Kofi Sarkodie - USA/Ghana
Andy Driver - Scotland/England
Omar Cummings - Jamaica/USA

Los Angeles Galaxy
Jaime Penedo - Panama/Spain
Omar Gonzalez - USA/Mexico
AJ DeLaGarza - USA/Guam
Kofi Opare - USA/Canada
Pablo Mastroeni - USA/Argentina
Laurent Courtois - France/Reunion
Jack McBean - USA/Scotland

Montreal Impact
Hassoun Camara - France/Senegal
Matteo Ferrari - Italy/Algeria
Patrice Bernier - Canada/France
Hernan Bernardello - Argentina/Italy
Zakaria Messoudi - Canada/Morocco
Felipe - Brazil/Italy

New England Revolution
Jose Goncalves - Portugal/Switzerland
Andrew Farrell - USA/Peru
Ryan Guy - Guam/USA
Andy Dorman - Wales/England
Lee Nguyen - USA/Vietnam
Juan Agudelo - USA/Colombia
Saer Sene - France/Senegal
Dimitry Imbongo - France/DR Congo
Charlie Davies - USA/Gambia

New York Red Bulls
Kevin Hartman - USA/Germany
Ryan Meara - Ireland/USA
Santiago Castano - USA/Colombia
Luis Robles - USA/Puerto Rico
Jamison Olave - Colombia/USA
Matthew Miazga - USA/Poland
Tim Cahill - Australia/Samoa
Jonny Steele - Northern Ireland/USA
Michael Bustamante - Colombia/USA
Sam Lloyd - England/Ghana
Thierry Henry - France/Guadeloupe
Andre Akpan - USA/Ghana
Peguy Luyindula - France/DR Congo
Bradley Wright-Phillips - England/Grenada

Philadelphia Union
Oka Nikolov - Macedonia/Germany
Amobi Okugo - USA/Nigeria
Michael Lahoud - USA/Sierra Leone
Roger Torres - Colombia/USA
Yann Ekra - Cote d'Ivoire/France
Antoine Hoppenot - USA/France

Portland Timbers
Mikaël Silvestre - France/Guadeloupe
Diego Valeri - Argentina/Italy
Sal Zizzo - USA/Italy
Rodney Wallace - Costa Rica/USA
Frédéric Piquionne - Martinique/France

Real Salt Lake
Eduardo Fernandez - USA/Mexico
Josh Saunders - Puerto Rico/USA
Aaron Maund - USA/Trinidad and Tobago
Kyle Beckerman - USA/Germany
Javier Morales - Argentina/Italy
Sebastian Velasquez - USA/Colombia
Robbie Findley - USA/Trinidad and Tobago

San Jose Earthquakes
Jason Hernandez - USA/Puerto Rico
Nana Attakora - Canada/Ghana
Ramiro Corrales - USA/Mexico
Steven Beitashour - Iran/USA
Chris Wondolowski - USA/Poland

Seattle Sounders
Marcus Hahnemann - USA/Germany
Djimi Traore - Mali/France
Osvaldo Alonso - Cuba/USA
Steve Zakuani - DR Congo/England
Obafemi Martins - Nigeria/Italy
David Estrada - Mexico/USA

Sporting Kansas City
Fede Bessone - Argentina/Spain
Ike Opara - USA/Nigeria
Benny Feilhaber - USA/Austria/Brazil
Soony Saad - Lebanon/USA
Teal Bunbury - USA/Canada
Claudio Bieler - Argentina/Ecuador

Toronto FC
Chris Konopka - USA/Poland
Stefan Frei - Switzerland/USA
Quillan Roberts - Canada/Guyana
Doneil Henry - Canada/Jamica
Gale Agbossoumonde - USA/Togo
Ashtone Morgan - Canada/Jamaica
Manny Aparicio - Argentina/Canada
Jonathan Osorio - Canada/Colombia
Bright Dike - Nigeria/USA
Robert Earnshaw - Wales/Zambia

Vancouver Whitecaps
Simon Thomas - Canada/France
Andy O'Brien - Ireland/England
Sam Adekugbe - Canada/England
Nigel Reo-Coker - England/Sierra Leone
Jun Marques Davidson - Japan/USA
Matt Watson - England/USA
Gershon Koffie - Ghana/Canada
Russel Teibert - Canada/Italy
Kekuta Manneh - Gambia/USA
Omar Salgado - USA/Spain
Tommy Heinemann - USA/Germany

Could Have Been in CONCACAF

Prominent European players that have family roots in CONCACAF-based nations.

Antigua and Barbuda
Emile Heskey (Newcastle Jets)
Colin Kazim-Richards (Bursaspor)

Barbados
Ashley Cole (Chelsea)
Tom Ince (Blackpool)
Fitz Hall (former Watford)
Tom Soares (Bury)

Canada
Jonathan de Guzman (Swansea City)
Asmir Begovic (Stoke City)
Steven Vitoria (Benfica)
Ricardo Ferreira (Olhanense)

Curaçao
Gregory van der Wiel (PSG)
Jetro Willems (PSV)
Vurnon Anita (Newcastle United)
Leandro Bacuna (Aston Villa)
Leroy Fer (Norwich City)
Hedwiges Maduro (Sevilla)

Dominica
Jermain Defoe (Tottenham Hotspur)
Jay Emmanuel-Thomas (Bristol City)
Kieran Agard (Rotherham United)

Grenada
Bradley Wright-Phillips (NY Red Bulls)
Shaun Wright-Phillips (QPR)
Cameron Jerome (Crystal Palace)
Ashley Young (Manchester United)

Guadeloupe (non-FIFA member, CONCACAF member)
William Gallas (free agent)
Eric Abidal (Monaco)
Thierry Henry (NY Red Bulls)
Mikael Silvestre (Portland Timbers)
Sylvain Distin (Everton)
Etienne Capoue (Tottenham Hotspur)
Yoann Gouffran (Newcastle United)
Kevin Theophile-Catherine (Cardiff City)
Dimitri Foulquier (Granada CF)
Allan Blaze (Genoa)
Anthony Martial (Monaco)
Jonathan Biabiany (Parma)
Alexander Lacazette (Olympique Lyonnais)
Julian Jeanvier (Lille OSC)
Daniel Congre (Montpellier)
Jerome Roussillon (Sochaux)
Claude Dielna (Ajaccio)
Jeremy Sorbon (Guingamp)

Guyana
Martin Braithwaite (Toulouse)

Haiti
Nicolas Isimat-Mirin (Monaco)

Jamaica
Theo Walcott (Arsenal)
Jermaine Pennant (Stoke City)
Ashley Young (Manchester United)
Anthony Gardner (Sheffield Wednesday)
Luke Moore (Elazigspor)
Darren Bent (Fulham)
Aaron Lennon (Tottenham Hotspur)
Raheem Sterling (Liverpool)
Daniel Sturridge (Liverpool)
Aaron McLean (Hull City)

Martinique (non-FIFA member, CONCACAF member)
Axel Witsel (Zenit St. Petersburg)
Nicolas Anelka (West Bromwich Albion)
Peter Luccin (FC Dallas)
Gael Clichy (Manchester City)
Sylvain Marveaux (Newcastle United)
Joris Marveaux (Montpellier)
Loic Remy (Newcastle United)
Raphael Varane (Real Madrid)
Jordan Loties (Osasuna)
Anthony Modeste (1899 Hoffenheim)
Emmanuel Riviere (Monaco)
Jimmy Briand (Olympique Lyonnais)
Pierre-Yves Polomat (Saint-Etienne)
Steeve Elana (Lille OSC)
Nicolas Maurice-Belay (Bordeaux)
Kevin Anin (OGC Nice)
Garry Bocaly (Montpellier)
Fabrice Pancrate (Nantes)
Johan Audel (Nantes)
Steeven Langil (Guingamp)
Bedi Buval (Academica de Coimbra)

Montserrat
Titus Bramble (free agent)
Lloyd Dyer (Leicester City)

St. Lucia
Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United)
Anton Ferdinand (Antalyaspor)
Jermain Defoe (Tottenham Hotspur)

Suriname
Royston Drenthe (Reading)
Michel Vorm (Swansea City)
Ryan Babel (Kasimpasa)
Nigel de Jong (AC Milan)
Luciano Narsingh (PSV)
Edson Braafheid (1899 Hoffenheim)
Eljero Elia (Werder Bremen)
Romeo Castelen (RKC Waalwijk)
Urby Emanuelson (AC Milan)
Evander Sno (free agent)
Dwight Tiendalli (Swansea City)

Trinidad & Tobago
Tom Ince (Blackpool)
Bobby Zamora (QPR)

United States
Boaz Myhill (West Bromwich Albion)
Brede Hangeland (Fulham)
Giuseppe Rossi (Fiorentina)
Neven Subotic (Borussia Dortmund)
Shawn Parker (Mainz 05)
Yura Movsisyan (Spartak Moscow)
Caleb Patterson-Sewell (Gil Vicente)


I'm sure this list is far from complete, feel free to help add to it in the comments.

Foreign Player Statistics in Top 15 European Leagues

The most represented player nationalities (10+) in the top 15 European Leagues (by UEFA coefficient).

Austria
N/A (9 - Spain)

Belgium
42 - France
11 - Senegal
10 - Netherlands

England
37 - France
32 - Spain
28 - Ireland
21 - Scotland
16 - Netherlands
14 - Wales
14 - Brazil
13 - Belgium
10 - Argentina
10 - Germany

France
21 - Senegal
20 - Brazil
15 - Mali
15 - Cote d'Ivoire
12 - Argentina

Germany
17 - Switzerland
16 - Brazil
12 - Turkey
12 - Austria
12 - Czech Republic

Greece
32 - Spain
29 - Argentina
19 - Brazil
17 - Portugal
11 - Serbia

Italy
48 - Argentina
47 - Brazil
17 - Uruguay
13 - France
13 - Colombia
12 - Serbia
11 - Croatia
11 - Spain
10 - Switzerland

Netherlands
21 - Belgium
14 - Sweden
12 - Denmark
11 - Germany

Portugal
117 - Brazil
11 - Cape Verde
10 - Argentina
10 - Serbia

Romania
25 - Brazil
22 - Portugal

Russia
23 - Brazil
17 - Belarus

Spain
27 - Argentina
19 - Brazil
19 - Portugal
15 - France
11 - Uruguay

Switzerland
N/A (8 - France)

Turkey
17 - Brazil
11 - Senegal
10 - Portugal

Ukraine
38 - Brazil



Foreign Player Stats compiled from TransferMarkt

MLS: Top Goal Scorer Salaries

Salaries of MLS players that have scored 8+ goals in the 2013 season.

Goals - Player (2013 Guaranteed Compensation)

19 - Marco Di Vaio ($1,937,508)
18 - Mike Magee ($191,666)
16 - Camilo ($247,500)
13 - Robbie Keane ($4,333,333)
12 - Dominic Oduro ($122,015)
11 - Federico Higuain ($604,000)
11 - Diego Fagundez ($127,196)
11 - Blas Perez ($324,250)
10 - Conor Casey ($175,000)
10 - Claudio Bieler ($200,000)
10 - Alvaro Saborio ($453,333)
10 - Jack McInerney ($189,666)
9 - Thierry Henry ($4,350,000)
9 - Tim Cahill ($3,625,000)
9 - Chris Wondolowski ($600,000)
8 - Diego Valeri ($400,000)
8 - Javier Morales ($300,000)
8 - Landon Donovan ($2,500,000)
8 - Will Bruin ($165,000)
8 - Obafemi Martins ($1,725,000)
8 - Ryan Johnson ($144,704)
8 - Lamar Neagle ($48,400)
8 - Giles Barnes ($184,187)
8 - Darlington Nagbe ($266,000)
8 - Eddie Johnson ($156,333)
8 - Fabian Espindola ($150,000)
8 - Juan Agudelo ($175,000)
8 - Kenny Miller ($1,124,992)


$ per Goal Scored (Salary ÷ Goals Scored)

$6,050 - Lamar Neagle (8)
$10,168 - Dominic Oduro (12)
$10,648 - Mike Magee (18)
$15,469 - Camilo (16)
$17,500 - Conor Casey (10)
$18,088 - Ryan Johnson (8)
$18,967 - Jack McInerney (10)
$18,750 - Fabian Espindola (8)
$19,541 - Eddie Johnson (8)
$20,000 - Claudio Bieler (10)
$20,625 - Will Bruin (8)
$21,875 - Juan Agudelo (8)
$23,023 - Giles Barnes (8)
$29,477 - Blas Perez (11)
$33,250 - Darlington Nagbe (8)
$37,500 - Javier Morales (8)
$45,333 - Alvaro Saborio (10)
$50,000 - Diego Valeri (8)
$54,909 - Federico Higuain (11)
$66,667 - Chris Wondolowski (9)
$101,974 - Marco Di Vaio (19)
$140,624 - Kenny Miller (8)
$215,625 - Obafemi Martins (8)
$312,500 - Landon Donovan (8)
$333,333 - Robbie Keane (13)
$402,778 - Tim Cahill (9)
$483,333 - Thierry Henry (9)



Stats as of October 1, 2013