Tunisia sacks World Cup coach after a 5‑1 loss to Sweden

Tunisia has fired head coach Sabri Lamouchi following its opening 2026 World Cup game, in which the team suffered a 5‑1 defeat at the hands of Sweden.

The match, played at the Estadio Monterrey in Guadalupe, Mexico, left the Tunisian side with a heavy scoreboard. The news of Lamouchi’s dismissal spread quickly, but the Tunisian Football Association confirmed the contract was terminated “by mutual agreement” on Monday.

French coach Herve Renard, known for managing Morocco and Saudi Arabia, has been appointed head coach for the remainder of the tournament, taking charge next week before the team faces Japan and the Netherlands in its Group F matches.

Lamouchi’s sacking marks an unprecedented moment in World Cup history: he is the first manager to lose his job after just one match in the competition. His spell lasted five months and included a 1‑0 win over Haiti, but the 5‑0 loss to Belgium and a 1‑0 defeat to Austria in warm‑ups had already put pressure on his position.

In a statement after the loss, Lamouchi described the defeat as “painful” and highlighted the numerous mistakes that had cost the team. He added, “Starting the competition with this bad of a loss is indeed difficult; we made too many mistakes and this is not something that we can do. We are shooting ourselves in the foot, we are hurting ourselves.”