The US national team concluded an eventful 2014 as the 27th-ranked team on the planet, according to the year-end edition of the FIFA World Rankings released on Thursday, while their CONCACAF rivals Costa Rica finish the year at No. 16, the region's top-ranked team.
Meanwhile, Mexico held steady at No. 20, Canada slipped another two places to 112th and Cuba were pinned with the unfortunate designation of “Worst Mover” as they fell 34 places to 113th in the world, the month's biggest drop.
There was no change in the upper end of FIFA's list, with Germany, Argentina, Colombia, Belgium and the Netherlands keeping hold of the top five slots.
Despite gaining one spot from their November ranking, the USMNT have now slid 14 places since their No. 13 position in the June World Rankings going into the World Cup, their high-water mark for the year.
Jurgen Klinsmann's side have won just one match since their Round-of-16 run in Brazil, having gone 1-2-2 in five friendlies this fall.
The powerhouse trio of Costa Rica, Mexico and the USA were the only CONCACAF teams to finish in the top 50, with Trinidad & Tobago (55th), Panama (57th), Honduras (71st), Guatemala and Haiti (tied for 72nd), Jamaica (75th), El Salvador (90th) and Antigua & Barbuda (94th) finding places in the world top 100.
