Tunisia sack head coach Sabrei Lamouchi after World Cup opener loss
Tunisia fired Sabri Lamouchi after one World Cup match, a rare move that exposed panic and weak long-term planning after a 5-1 opening loss to Sweden.
Tunisia moved swiftly to end Sabri Lamouchi’s spell as head coach after a 5-1 defeat to Sweden in Monterrey left the side bottom of Group F and facing immediate pressure in FIFA World Cup 2026. The Tunisian Football Federation said on June 16, 2026, that Lamouchi was dismissed one match into the tournament, a decision that turns a poor opening result into a broader test of governance and decision-making.
Plans were already under way to install Mondher Kebaier as interim coach, underscoring how quickly Tunisia’s tournament ambitions had shifted from cautious optimism to damage control. Tunisia’s next match is against Japan on Saturday, June 20, with the Netherlands also in the group and little margin left after conceding five against Sweden at Monterrey Stadium in Monterrey, Mexico.
Lamouchi’s removal was especially stark because he had been hired only in January 2026, after Sami Trabelsi left following Tunisia’s last-16 exit to Mali at the CAF Africa Cup of Nations. His record was modest even before the World Cup: five matches in charge, one win, one draw and three losses. His only victory came in a 1-0 result over Haiti, leaving little evidence of the stability Tunisia needed before entering the sport’s biggest stage.
After the Sweden match, Lamouchi said Tunisia had been punished for a string of costly mistakes and needed to react, warning the team had to “give a better image.” The result itself was brutal from the start. Sweden scored seven minutes into the match, and Tunisia never recovered as the margin widened into a heavy defeat that raised questions well beyond one bad day.
The dismissal also carried unusual historical weight. Reuters reported that Lamouchi became the first manager in World Cup history to be sacked after just one game. Tunisia had made a similar move in the past, dismissing Henryk Kasperczak during the 1998 World Cup after a poor start, but he was allowed two matches. This time, the federation acted after a single opener, signaling both the fear of a mounting collapse and the absence of patience for a slow repair.
For Tunisia, the decision now puts as much scrutiny on the federation as on the sideline. Replacing a coach after one match may stop the immediate criticism, but it also suggests a program under intense pressure, with little room for error and even less evidence of a coherent plan.
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