Japan rout Tunisia 4-0 in 1,000th World Cup match, eliminating African side
Japan routed Tunisia 4-0 in Guadalupe on Sunday, eliminating the African team from the 2026 World Cup as the tournament's 1,000th match turned into a lopsided contest.
Milestone match
The Group F clash between Tunisia and Japan in Guadalupe was the 1,000th match in World Cup history, played before 51,243 fans at Estadio BBVA. Players and officials wore commemorative patches, but the occasion quickly turned into a Japanese exhibition.
Early blitz
Tunisia almost caught Japan cold in the third minute when Hannibal Mejbri fired wide from the left, but the Asian side responded immediately. Daichi Kamada finished a swift counter-attack in the fourth minute to score Japan's fastest World Cup goal. Ayase Ueda doubled the lead on 31 minutes, converting a well-worked move to finish from inside the box. Dylan Bronn prevented a certain third goal in the ninth minute with a last-ditch block, and a Japanese header from the resulting corner was somehow kept out by goalkeeper Aymen Dahmen, who clawed the ball off the line. Tunisia failed to register a shot on target in the first half and were outpassed by more than 200 attempts over the 90 minutes.
- Kick-off
- Daichi Kamada scores (4')
- Ayase Ueda makes it 2-0 (31')
- Half-time
- Junya Ito scores (69')
- Ayase Ueda scores his second (83')
Failed rescue mission
The result was Tunisia's second heavy loss after a 1-5 drubbing by Sweden, which had prompted the immediate dismissal of coach Sabri Lamouchi. His replacement, Hervé Renard, formerly of Zambia, Ivory Coast, Morocco and Saudi Arabia, took the reins just days earlier. Renard had been sacked by Saudi Arabia in April despite steering them to World Cup qualification, but his brief Tunisia tenure began with a similar collapse. The defensive disarray that plagued the team against Sweden resurfaced, and no tactical reset materialised.
Ueda double seals rout
Junya Ito extended the lead to 3-0 in the 69th minute, calmly converting a one-on-one chance. Ueda added his second of the night with a header in the 83rd from Koki Ogawa's looping cross, leaving Tunisia without a point after two matches. The result makes Tunisia the third team eliminated from the 2026 World Cup after the group stage, following Haiti and Turkey.
Group F picture
Japan and the Netherlands now sit joint top of Group F with four points each and a goal difference of +4. Sweden have three points and Tunisia zero. In the final round on 26 June, Japan face Sweden while Tunisia meet the Netherlands. Both Japan and the Netherlands are virtually assured of progression, with only the final positions undecided.
