Getting fired after one day on the job is rough. Getting fired after one game at the World Cup, on the biggest stage in global sports, is something else entirely.
Sabri Lamouchi became the first coach to be sacked during a World Cup tournament after just a single match. The Tunisian Football Federation dismissed him on June 15 following a 5-1 demolition by Sweden in their opening group-stage game in Monterrey. Hours later, the federation announced French coach Hervé Renard as his replacement.
A five-month experiment gone wrong
Lamouchi had only been in the job since January 2026. His contract was supposed to run through 2028. Five months and five matches later, he’s out, carrying a record of one win, one draw, and three losses.
The writing was arguably on the wall before the tournament even kicked off. Tunisia suffered a 5-0 loss to Belgium in a pre-tournament friendly, a result that would have set off alarm bells in most federations. The FTF apparently decided to give Lamouchi the benefit of the doubt heading into the World Cup proper.
