Spain No. 1, US 14th in final soccer rankings

ZURICH — Spain is ranked No. 1 in the year-end FIFA standings for the second straight year, while the United States is ranked 14th.

In rankings published Wednesday, the European champion maintained the lead it took last month from South American champion Brazil.

The Netherlands and world champion Italy stayed third and fourth as the top 10 remained unchanged.

Cameroon leads the African nations at No. 11, and the U.S. tops the CONCACAF region. Australia heads the Asian confederation at No. 21.

Algeria, which will play in the World Cup next year, improved to No. 26 — its best spot since the rankings were launched in 1993.