The
Tunisia national football team (), nicknamed
Les Aigles de Carthage (The Eagles of Carthage), is the national team of
Tunisia and is controlled by the
Fédération Tunisienne de Football. They have qualified for four
FIFA World Cups, the first one in
1978, but have yet to make it out of the first round. Nevertheless, they created history in that 1978 tournament in
Argentina by becoming the first
African side to win a World Cup match, beating
Mexico 3–1. They also held defending champions
West Germany to a goalless draw before bowing out. They have since qualified for the three tournaments in succession, in
1998,
2002 and
2006: they were the only
African team to appear at both the 2002 and 2006 tournaments.
Tunisia also won the
Africa Cup of Nations in
2004, when they hosted the tournament.
1978 World Cup
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. 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.
1998 World Cup
Adel Selmi's team were beaten 2–0 by
England and 1–0 by
Colombia to eliminate them at the group stage. Their only point was in a 1–1 draw with
Romania.
2002 World Cup
Tunisia reached their second...
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