The South American nation have been the dominant force in the sport, winning the Paralympic title at all four editions of the Games where it has featured.

They backed up their successes at Athens 2004, Beijing 2008 and London 2012 with victory on home soil at Rio 2016 in September, where they defeated Iran 1-0 in the final thanks to a goal from Ricardinho.

Argentina remain second in the standings after a bronze medal at Rio 2016 which came after a penalty shoot-out win over China.

China's fourth-place finish at the Games has seen them jump above Spain - who finished sixth in Rio - and into third in the rankings.

Iran's silver medal has seen them climb from ninth to sixth, with Turkey sitting in fifth place.

Morocco, Japan, Mexico and South Korea complete the top 10 in that order.

The Moroccans have risen seven places after finishing eighth at Rio 2016. 

Forty-two countries are now included in the rankings, with Laos featuring for the first time in 39th position.

Points gained during the second half of 2016, notably at the Paralympics, have been used to devise the latest standings.

Ranking points in 2012 have now been removed from the calculations.

Blind football is a five-a-side sport, and was played at Rio 2016 at the Olympic Tennis Centre.