When An African Team Needs Saving, Hervé Renard Usually Answers
Tunisia have placed their World Cup hopes in the hands Hervé Renard, who replaces Sabri Lamouchi after the Carthage Eagles’ humiliating 5-1 defeat by Sweden in their opening match of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The Frenchman arrives with a reputation few coaches on the continent can match. Across Africa, Renard’s name has become synonymous with triumphs. Tunisia will hope he can summon those qualities again with Japan and the Netherlands still to come in Group F and qualification hanging by a thread.
For many African football supporters, Renard’s legend began in Libreville in 2012. Against all expectations, he guided Zambia to the Africa Cup of Nations title, one of the greatest underdog stories in the tournament’s history. The victory carried emotional weight, coming in Gabon, close to the site of the 1993 air disaster that killed most of Zambia’s national team. Renard transformed a talented but unfancied squad into continental champions and etched his name into African football folklore.
Three years later, he repeated the feat with Ivory Coast. Tasked with leading a generation burdened by years of near-misses, Renard steered the Elephants to the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations crown, ending a 23-year wait for continental glory. In doing so, he became the first coach to win AFCON with two different countries, a record that elevated him into the pantheon of Africa’s most successful managers.
Renard helped restore belief in several African national teams, bringing a demanding professionalism and an ability to unite squads under pressure. Few foreign coaches have connected so deeply with African football culture or earned such widespread respect across the continent.
Morocco also benefited from his touch. Appointed in 2016, Renard guided the Atlas Lions back to the World Cup after a 20-year absence, securing qualification for Russia 2018 and helping lay foundations for the country’s rise into a global force. Although Morocco exited in the group stage in Russia, the structure, confidence and competitive mentality developed during his tenure are often viewed as important building blocks for the country’s run to the World Cup semi-finals four years later.
His achievements have not been confined to Africa. He led Saudi Arabia to one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history when they defeated eventual champions Argentina in Qatar in 2022, a result that enhanced his reputation as a coach capable of inspiring teams on football’s grandest stage.
Tunisia’s football federation believes that experience is precisely what is needed now. Lamouchi became the first managerial casualty of the 2026 World Cup after overseeing just five matches, with the crushing defeat by Sweden exposing tactical and defensive shortcomings. Renard has been handed the task of rescuing a campaign that appeared in danger of collapsing before it had truly begun.
Tunisia sit at the bottom of Group F with a damaging goal difference and little room for further mistakes. Yet if there is one coach with a history of reviving African teams when hope seems lost, it is Renard.
