World Rugby officially announce new rankings as Wales' fate sealed and England on the charge
Wales' defeat to Italy marked the team's 14th consecutive international loss, and the lowest point in Welsh rugby.
Following Georgia's victory over Netherlands in the Rugby Europe Championship, Wales have slipped even further down the World Rugby Rankings to 12th, as officially confirmed by the governing body at midday on Monday.
Warren Gatland's side are now staring down the barrel of a second consecutive Six Nations Wooden Spoon, which would have previously seemed impossible considering they were the number one ranked team in the world, for a brief period, in 2019.
READ MORE: Six Nations news LIVE as WRU consider Warren Gatland's future
READ MORE: 'It's not fair' – Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney in firing line as Shrewsbury boss hits out
Wales have dropped to 12th place in the rankings, one above Japan. They are due to tour there in the summer, and if they are to continue their losing streak, the Brave Blossoms could well leapfrog their Welsh opponents in the rankings, leading to even more Welsh misery.
Following their win against France, England have jumped to sixth place, with Scotland swapping with them following their loss to Ireland.
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There have been calls from some to introduce Six Nations promotion and relegation, with Georgia's dominance in the Rugby Europe Championship pushing their case to be involved. Wales legend Sam Warburton re-affirmed his calls for this recently, but says it almost certainly could never happen.
Wales have not won an international game since they defeated Georgia in the pool stages of the 2023 World Cup, and despite Gatland's message of "building towards the 2027 World Cup", there have been little signs of progression in recent months, with the game against Italy arguably the worst performance of his second tenure so far.
1South Africa
92.782Ireland
91.36
(+0.58)
3New Zealand
90.364France
87.19
(-1.32)
5Argentina
84.976
(↑7)
England
83.63
(+1.32)
7
(↓6)
Scotland
82.99
(-0.58)
8Australia
81.529Fiji
80.0710Italy
78.67
(+0.26)
11
(↑12)
Georgia
73.8512
(↓11)
Wales
73.75
(-0.26)
13Japan
72.9514Samoa
72.6815USA
70.02
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