Tunisia national football team suffered a crushing 5-1 defeat to Sweden in the 2026 World Cup, the heaviest defeat in their World Cup history. The match was played on Monday morning at the Monterrey stadium in Mexico, marking the start of Tunisia's campaign in the fifth group, which also includes the Netherlands and Japan. The Swedish team scored the first goal in the 7th minute through Yasin Ayari, following a clear defensive mistake, with a shot from Victor Claesson that was deflected by the Tunisian defense, allowing Ayari to score a powerful shot into the net. Ayari, a Brighton player of Tunisian origin, refused to celebrate his goal in the Tunisian net, citing his Tunisian roots, and instead raised his hands in apology and bowed to God in gratitude, amidst the joy of his teammates. From a quick counterattack, Alexander Isak added the second goal for Sweden in the 30th minute, after he dodged Monther Thalbi and scored a precise shot that went over the head of goalkeeper Mehdi Ben Said. The match seemed easy for the Swedish stars, with a significant decline in Tunisian players' performance, and a lack of attacking output. But before the end of the first half, specifically in the 43rd minute, Tunisia narrowed the gap with a precise header from Omar Rekik, exploiting a notable cross from Hannibal Mejri. This goal brought Tunisia back into the game, and they entered the second half attempting to capitalize on the momentum, but their efforts were in vain, failing to pose any threat to the Swedish goal. In the 59th minute, Victor Claesson killed Tunisia's hopes with the third goal, after a silly mistake by captain Elias Skhiri, who tried to evade Isak and cut the ball in front of the penalty area, allowing the Arsenal striker to score easily. The Tunisian players surrendered after the third goal, and coach Sabri Lamouchi made several substitutions, bringing in Elias Al-Aoula, Haythem Mahdouli, and Sebastien Thill, followed by Frédéric Frans Shaw and Ismail Jabri, but without any notable improvement. Before the end of the match, substitute Mattias Svanberg scored the fourth goal for Sweden in the 84th minute, amidst protests from the Tunisian players, citing the offside position, but video technology confirmed the goal. The remaining minutes saw the Tunisian players fail to pose any threat, and the defensive confusion was evident in the final moments, allowing Sweden to create some threatening attacks. The Tunisian team's poor performance resulted in the fifth goal for Sweden, scored by Yasin Ayari again with a long-range shot in the 90+6 minute, celebrating his goal in the Tunisian net. Sweden's team raised their record to 3 points at the top of the group, while Tunisia's team remained at the bottom with no points, with the Netherlands and Japan in second and third place with a point each after their 2-2 draw. It is worth noting that the Tunisian team suffered another crushing defeat against Belgium (5-0) in their last friendly match ahead of the World Cup.