Tunisia's Dismal Exit… South Korea Holds Worst Group Stage Record Since 1954

Tunisia has received the most dismal scorecard in the group stage of the 2026 FIFA North and Central America World Cup.
Tunisia concluded the tournament with zero points, scoring 2 goals and conceding 12, following a 1-3 loss to the Netherlands in their final Group F match held at Kansas City Stadium in the U.S. today (June 26).
After losses to Sweden (1-5) and Japan (0-4), the team suffered another defeat, finishing with three consecutive losses.
Following Tunisia's poor performance, AFP reported on historical cases of teams being eliminated from the World Cup with "zero points" and a "double-digit goal difference."
Among these, the most dishonorable record is held by South Korea.
In their first-ever appearance at the 1954 Switzerland World Cup, South Korea lost 0-9 to Hungary in their opening match and 0-7 to Turkey (then known as Türkiye), finishing the tournament with two losses and 16 goals conceded.
Despite playing only two matches, South Korea conceded 16 goals, a dishonorable record for the worst goal difference in a World Cup group stage that has stood for 72 years.
North Korea, at the 2010 South Africa World Cup, put up a good fight against Brazil in a 1-2 loss, but was eliminated with 1 goal scored and 12 conceded after losing 0-7 to Portugal, led by Cristiano Ronaldo, and 0-3 to Ivory Coast.
Saudi Arabia, at the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, began with a 0-8 crushing defeat to Germany, followed by a 0-1 loss to Cameroon and a 0-3 loss to Ireland, finishing with zero goals scored and 12 conceded.
Greece was eliminated at the 1994 U.S. World Cup with zero goals scored and 10 conceded, after losing 0-4 to both Argentina and Bulgaria, and 0-2 to Nigeria.
Additionally, El Salvador suffered the largest margin of defeat in World Cup history at the 1982 Spain World Cup, losing 1-10 to Hungary.
Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of the Congo) recorded zero goals scored and 14 conceded at the 1974 West Germany World Cup, including a 0-9 loss to Yugoslavia.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo earned its first-ever World Cup point against Portugal in this tournament, 52 years later.
Haiti also returned to the World Cup stage in this tournament after 52 years, having been eliminated in the 1974 West Germany tournament with 2 goals scored and 14 conceded, including a 0-7 loss to Poland.
(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.