Tunisia

Tunisia at the World Cup 2026

Tunisia arrive at the 2026 World Cup for a third consecutive tournament — a streak broken only by a single missed cycle (2014) since their 1978 debut. Sami Trabelsi has been head coach since 2024 after Jalel Kadri's departure following the AFCON 2023 group-stage exit. The Trabelsi system is a defensive-leaning 4-1-4-1 explicitly built to keep games tight against higher-ranked opposition.

Captain Wahbi Khazri (Montpellier) returned from a brief international retirement in 2024 to lead the side through qualifying. Hannibal Mejbri (Burnley since his summer 2024 move from Manchester United) is the squad's defining young talent — 22 years old, the central attacking midfielder. Ellyes Skhiri (Eintracht Frankfurt) anchors the central midfield alongside Aïssa Laïdouni (Union Berlin).

The defensive structure features Yassine Meriah (Esperance), Dylan Bronn (Salernitana), Mohamed Dräger and Ali Abdi as the back-four spine. Goalkeeper Aymen Dahmen (Sochaux) is the first-choice, replacing veteran Mouez Hassen who has retired. The lone striker role is contested between Khazri (when playing forward) and Mohamed Ali Ben Romdhane (Ferencváros) for the false-nine variant.

Group F contains Netherlands, Japan and Sweden. Tunisia are heavy outsiders at consensus 5.00 to top the group. The realistic ceiling is one win at the group stage, repeating the 2022 Qatar shock when they beat France 1-0; the credible baseline is a 0W/0D/3L exit. Outright tournament price 401.0 — among the longest of CAF qualifiers.

Group F fixtures

All three group-stage matches for Tunisia at World Cup 2026 with current odds from our partner books.

Squad & predicted XI

Dahmen · Talbi, Bronn, Meriah, Abdi · Ben Romdhane · Skhiri, Mejbri, Laidouni, Sliti · Khazri (c)

Formation: 4-1-4-1 · Coach: Sami Trabelsi

How Tunisia qualified for World Cup 2026

Tunisia qualified from CAF Group H with 25 points from 10 matches — first place ahead of Equatorial Guinea, Namibia, Liberia, Malawi and São Tomé. Seven wins, four draws, one defeat. The 1-2 loss in Malawi (June 2024) was the campaign's standout disappointment; the 3-0 home win over Equatorial Guinea (October 2024) was the structural reference result.

Khazri finished as the squad's leading qualifying scorer with 6 goals — most from set-piece routines. Hannibal Mejbri contributed 3 from his central midfield position. The defensive structure conceded only 6 goals across 10 matches — Trabelsi's central tactical reference is that 'we will not lose by three goals to anyone in our group at this World Cup'.

The pre-tournament friendly window produced a 0-0 home draw with Russia (May 2026, controversial fixture given UEFA suspension status) and a 1-0 friendly win over Mauritania. Trabelsi has been criticised in the Tunisian press for the conservative tactical approach but has retained federation backing.

World Cup history

Tunisia have appeared at six previous World Cups (1978, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2018, 2022). They have never advanced from the group stage. Best individual results: a 3-1 win over Mexico at Argentina 1978 (the first-ever African World Cup victory); a 1-0 win over France at Qatar 2022 (the defending champions, who had already qualified); and a 1-1 draw with Belgium at Russia 2018. The 2022 France win remains the high point of recent Tunisian football.

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