Most soccer experts dont put a lot of credence into those rankings. They seem to constantly being tweaked.
Years and and years ago, USA was somehow ranked in the top 5 or so in the world and everyone knew it was so wrong, they started tinkering with the ratings. So that tells you they are flawed.
Ill put it this way, despite being ranked #13 in the world, there are a whole heckuva lot more than 12 teams that would be favored in a match vs USA. Hell, Ghana was favored over us last match.
No, the US is one of the most underated soccer teams there is. They dominated their qualifying pool leading from Day 1 until the end. Then score in the 1st minute of the world cup. Happen to give up a goal at the end and score right back. They are on top of the 2nd tier to win this thing. All of these matches are so close, they are 1 of the 12 teams that could win it all. In 2006, Italy won it and the US gave Italy a draw in their group match
It wouldn't be as shocking as if a number of other teams like Iran or Honduras won it. It'd still be considered a pretty sizable upset, though. USA can be best described as a mid-major. On their day, they can beat any team in the world. But also not good enough to consistently beat teams they should.
Imagine if Butler had won the national title when they lost to Duke, or if VCU had pulled it out when they made their final 4 run. That's probably about how it'd be viewed on the world stage.
Imagine if Butler had won the national title when they lost to Duke, or if VCU had pulled it out when they made their final 4 run. That's probably about how it'd be viewed on the world stage.
