Tunisia vs Japan | FIFA World Cup 2026 — Group Stage | Preview and Predictions

This will be an exciting all-important Group F clash between Japan and Tunisia on 21st June at the Estadio Monterrey in Guadalupe, Mexico. 

For the game, here we present our preview and prediction.

FIFA WC26 | Group F: TUN vs JPN| 07:30 IST, June 21, 2026

Tunisia suffered a huge 5-1 defeat against Sweden in their opening encounter which led to their head-coach Sabri Lamouchi being sacked mid-tournament. Tunisia has appointed Hervé Renard as his replacement until the end of the 2026 World Cup. 

Tunisia topped their qualifying group without conceding a goal and much was expected from them. However, Sweden inflicted a heavy defeat, scoring five goals and conceding only one. Alexander Isak bagged a goal and two assists; Yasin Ayari scored a brace and Viktor Gyokeres and Mattias Svanberg completed the demolition. Omar Rekik was the lone scorer for Tunisia. Individual error and poor defending cost Tunisia in this game, something they will need to improve on against Japan. 

Japan opened their World Cup encounter with an enthralling 2-2 draw with the Netherlands. Having gone behind twice, the Samurai Blue showed great powers of recovery and fight to ensure a point late in the game when Daichi Kamada equalised in the 88th minute. Keito Nakamura was the other scorer. Virgil van Dijk and Crysensio Summerville were on the scoresheet for Netherlands. 

Japan do have injury problems in their squad, already missing key players in Kaoru Mitoma and captain Wataru Endo. Takefuso Kuba is also out for the rest of the campaign with a serious knee injury. 

If Sweden defeats the Netherlands in the other encounter, they will qualify for the Round of 16 and there will only be one spot left for automatic qualification, hence a win is necessary for either side. Being a higher-ranked side, Japan is the clear favourite for this game. The Japanese team likes to play attacking football and will take the game to Tunisia. Our prediction would be another defeat for the Eagles of Carthage, possibly knocking them out of the tournament. 

Score Prediction:  Tunisia 1-3 Japan 

Venue:  Estadio Monterrey, Guadalupe, Mexico