Tunisia suffered a disappointing start to their FIFA World Cup 2026 campaign after falling to a 5–1 defeat against Sweden in their opening Group F fixture at the Estadio BBVA in Monterrey on Monday, www.aclsports.com reports.
The Carthage Eagles, renowned for their defensive resilience during qualification, were undone by Sweden’s attacking quality as Yasin Ayari, born in Sweden to a Tunisian father, produced a standout performance, with his spectacular strikes in both halves sandwiched by goals from Alexander Isak, Viktor Gyökeres and Mattias Svanberg in a dominant display from the Scandinavians.
Sweden struck early, with Ayari opening the scoring after just seven minutes. The midfielder found space outside the box before firing a brilliant effort into the top corner to set the tone for a commanding first half display.
The pressure continued, and Sweden doubled their lead in the 30th minute when Alexander Isak finished off a rapid counter attack, linking up neatly with Viktor Gyökeres before slotting home calmly.
Tunisia responded before the break as Omar Rekik reduced the deficit with a powerful header from Hannibal Mejbri’s delivery, giving Sabri Lamouchi’s side a lifeline heading into half time.
However, Sweden restored control after the restart. Gyökeres added a third in the 59th minute after Isak created the chance, finishing confidently to extend the advantage.
Substitute Mattias Svanberg then made an immediate impact, scoring just 18 seconds after coming on to make it 4–1 following a VAR review. The goal is the second fastest by a substitute in a FIFA World Cup match since 1966, behind only Richard Morales’ 16 second strike for Uruguay against Senegal in 2002.
Ayari completed his brace deep into stoppage time with another superb long range strike to seal a 5–1 win for Sweden.
The result ranks among the heavier defeats suffered by an African team at the FIFA World Cup finals, echoing Cameroon’s 6–1 loss to Russia in 1994.
The defeat leaves Tunisia with work to do in Group F, where they will next face Japan and the Netherlands, while Sweden move top of the group after an impressive opening performance.
