Can't remember if I ever mentioned this before and I don't see it in a thread anywhere, so sorry if this is a repeat.
In my opinion, rankings seems like very valuable information. To be honest, I don't really want people knowing how powerful or weak me or my alliance is. If I'm strong, I'd love to have people bash their armies against my walls. If I'm weak, I want people to be afraid of attacking me in case I'm hiding some horde. It's cool to see how you are performing in relation to others, but not when it threatens "national security". I suggest that this information only be made available through a series of successful spy missions and then it only tells you your ranking compared to the guy you are spying on.