Every team in the Northern Ireland Football League ranked - who comes out on top?
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Taking data from 183 different countries and 413 unique domestic leagues while using their ‘Power Rankings’, which ‘assigns an ability score to nearly 13,500 domestic football teams on a scale between zero and 100’, they’ve produced a hierarchy of teams from the Danske Bank Premiership to Premier Intermediate.
Reigning top-flight champions Linfield come out on top with a worldwide position of 1,096th, which puts them in between Paraguayan outfit Sportivo Luqueño (1,095th) and one spot ahead of North Macedonia’s FK Bregalnica Štip.
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Hide AdCurrent table toppers Cliftonville are ranked as the second best team (1,451st in the world) with Larne just 29 worldwide positions behind them.
The Analyst believes Bayern Munich are the world’s best side with Manchester City trailing in second and despite their inconsistent form throughout the 2022/23 campaign, Liverpool make up the top three.
Here are the full NIFL rankings, which are updated daily:
1.Linfield (1,096th worldwide)
2.Cliftonville (1,451st)
3.Larne (1,480th)
4.Crusaders (1,700th)
5.Glentoran (1,791st)
6.Coleraine (1,822nd)
7.Ballymena United (3,293rd)
8.Glenavon (3,611th)
9.Newry City (5,285th)
10.Carrick Rangers (5,354th)
11.Dungannon Swifts (5,721st)
12.Loughgall (5,748th)
13.Annagh United (5,857th)
14.Warrenpoint Town (6,443rd)
15.Portadown (6,798th)
16.Dundela (7,057th)
17.Ards (7,837th)
18.Ballinamallard United (7,922nd)
19.Institute (8,151st)
20.H&W Welders (8,292nd)
21.Dergview (8,547th)
22.Ballyclare Comrades (8,871st)
23.Bangor (8,947th)
24.Newington (9,109th)
25.Dollingstown (9,812th)
26.Knockbreda (9,974th)
27.Limavady United (10,008th)
28.Queen’s University (10,065th)
29.Banbridge Town (10,312th)
30.Portstewart (10,879th)
31.Ballymacash Rangers (11,021st)
32.Moyola Park (11,225th)
33.Armagh City (11,231st)
34.Lisburn Distillery (11,307th)
35.Tobermore United (11,698th)
36.PSNI (12,252nd)
Annagh United were the biggest winners of the past week, improving their position by 249 places after beating Dundela 3-0 while Loughgall, who returned to the Championship’s summit with back-to-back victories over Ballinamallard United and Ballyclare Comrades, went up 210 spots.
Glentoran, Newry City, Warrenpoint Town, H&W Welders, Lisburn Distillery and Tobermore United also earned a ranking increase.
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Hide AdThe team most negatively impacted were Dundela (-401 places) and in the Danske Bank Premiership, Dungannon Swifts were the biggest fallers (-166).
Larne, who sit second in the top-flight and only three points off top spot, dropped 98 spots due to a 0-0 stalemate with Newry City.