The spain national team is the only team in the history of international football to have achieved top place in the FIFA World Ranking league without having won the FIFA World Cup beforehand. It achieved this notable feat in July 2008. Only six international teams have been ranked number one in that prestigious ranking league thus far in world football history. The spain national team, therefore, joins an elite group of teams in that regard. Experts, pundits and fans of world football were not generally surprised that the team obtained the top ranking position because it was obvious just how masterly a team it had evolved into.
During the period of autumn 2006 to late summer 2009, the spain national team played thirty five matches without suffering a single defeat. Furthermore, this incredible feat also included a run of fifteen consecutive wins rather than a combination of wins and draws. Brazil is the only other football nation to have achieved a thirty five match unbeaten run. However, Brazil did not improve on the thirty five match marker so Spain shares the record. The record, thus far, has not been bettered by any other team. Five years have passed since autumn 2006 yet the spain national team is as formidable now as it was then.