Tunisia has officially secured its place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup after a dramatic 1-0 victory over hosts Equatorial Guinea on Monday. A last-gasp winner from Mohamed Ben Romdhane in the 94th minute was all the Carthage Eagles needed to clinch an unassailable lead in Group H of the African qualifiers.
The win puts Tunisia on 22 points from eight matches, a full 10 points clear of second-placed Namibia, who have just three games remaining. This is a monumental achievement for the North African side, coached by Sami Trabelsi, as they will now make their third consecutive and seventh overall appearance at the global finals, which will be co-hosted by the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
It appeared as though Tunisia would have to wait for another matchday to confirm their qualification. However, a crucial defensive error from the Equatorial Guinea backline gifted an opportunity to Firas Chaouat, who squared the ball for an unmarked Ben Romdhane to tap into an empty net, sparking wild celebrations.
The victory makes Tunisia the second African nation to book a ticket to the 48-team tournament, following Morocco, who secured their spot with a decisive 2-0 win over Zambia on Saturday. Youssef En-Nesyri and Hamza Igamane were the goalscorers for the Atlas Lions in that match.
Meanwhile, other matches in the African qualifiers also saw significant results. Mozambique kept their hopes of qualification alive with a 2-0 home win against Botswana in Group G. Goals from Witi and Faisal Banga closed the gap to three points behind group leaders Algeria, though Mozambique has played one more game.
With nine automatic qualification spots available for African teams and a tenth place up for grabs through an inter-continental play-off, the race for the remaining tickets to the World Cup is set to intensify in the coming months.
