The FIFA World Cup, sometimes called the Football World Cup or the Soccer World Cup, but usually referred to simply as the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the men's national teams of the members of Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The championship has been awarded every four years since the first tournament in 1930, except in 1942 and 1946, due to World War II.
The tournament consists of two parts, the qualification phase and the final phase (officially called the World Cup Finals). The qualification phase, which currently take place over the three years preceding the Finals, is used to determine which teams qualify for the Finals. The current format of the Finals involves 32 teams competing for the title, at venues within the host nation (or nations) over a period of about a month. The World Cup Finals is the most widely viewed sporting event in the world, with an estimated 715.1 million people watching the 2006 tournament final.
Tunisia have appeared in the finals of the FIFA World Cup on four occasions, the first being at the 1978 FIFA World Cup where they finished in ninth position. Between 1998 and 2006 they had a streak of three World Cup qualifications. Their team failed to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil as they lost the two-legged play-offs against Cameroon.[1]
FIFA World Cup record
As of 2014, Tunisia never survived the group phase of a World Cup. Their first World Cup match, against Mexico in 1978, ended in their sole World Cup match victory.
Tunisia's first World Cup was the 1978 competition held in Argentina. They became the first African team to win a World Cup game, defeating Mexico 3–1 in Rosario.[2] A 1–0 defeat to 1974 semi-finalists Poland followed, but although The Eagles Of Carthage then held reigning champions West Germany to a 0–0 draw, they failed to reach the next stage. Tunisia failed to qualify for the World Cup again until twenty years later.
| Team |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
Pts |
 Poland |
3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | +3 | 5 |
 West Germany |
3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 0 | +6 | 4 |
 Tunisia |
3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | +1 | 3 |
 Mexico |
3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 12 | −10 | 0 |
West Germany v Tunisia
10 June 1978 (First Round) 16:45 ART |
Adel Sellimi's team were beaten 2–0 by England,[3][4] and 1–0 by Colombia[5] to eliminate them at the group stage. Their only point was in a 1–1 draw with Romania.[6]
Tunisia reached their second successive World Cup, co-hosted by South Korea and Japan. They started with a 2–0 loss against Russia, but a Raouf Bouzaiene free kick gave them a 1–1 draw against Belgium. Their final game resulted in a 2–0 defeat to co-hosts Japan, meaning they were knocked out in the group stages.
All times local (UTC+9)
Tunisia drew their opening game against Saudi Arabia 2–2, but lost their second match to Spain 3–1 and lost their last group match to Ukraine with a 1–0 defeat ending their 2006 World Cup.
All times local (CEST/UTC+2)
Summary table
References
External links
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1 Considered a successor team by FIFA, or have competed under another name(s). 2 Have been member of multiple confederations. 3 Team and national federation no longer exist. |
Romania
England
Colombia
Japan.svg.png){kind=small}
Belgium
Russia
Tunisia
Spain
Ukraine
Saudi Arabia
23'
1930 to 
1958
1962
1978
1994
1998
2010 to 
2014
2022