The wave of managerial departures among national teams competing at the 2026 FIFA World Cup has continued, with the tournament — currently being held in the United States, Mexico and Canada — witnessing a string of coaching changes after poor results cost several managers their jobs, the latest of them being Frenchman Hervé Renard.
Renard brought his brief tenure in charge of the Tunisia national team to an end after having taken over during the current tournament.
Renard, who failed to prevent Tunisia from being eliminated in the group stage, announced his departure on Saturday evening.
The exit had been anticipated, but it became official following his failure to rescue the Tunisian side, with the French coach confirming the news in a post on his Instagram account.
"Before leaving, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the federation, which gave me the opportunity to participate in the 2026 World Cup. It has been an honour for me to wear the colours of the Tunisian national team and to live through an unforgettable experience," Renard said.
He added: "I wish the Tunisian national team all the best in the future. I am convinced it will continue to progress, in order to bring joy to the entire nation and to write beautiful chapters of history."
He wrote: "Thank you to everyone who supported me throughout this adventure. I wish you success in the future. My adventure has reached its conclusion."
Just as Renard was the latest casualty of an early World Cup exit, the failure of the Eagles of Carthage was also the reason Sabri Lamouchi became the first managerial victim.
Lamouchi departed as Tunisia coach following a heavy 1-5 defeat to Sweden in the opening matchday of Group 6, with Renard taking over in his place.
Things did not go any better under Renard, as Tunisia lost 0-4 to Japan in the second round of matches, before falling 1-3 to the Netherlands in the final group game.
The Scottish Football Association announced on 27 June that Steve Clarke had resigned as national team manager following the side's elimination in the group stage.
Scotland failed to advance to the knockout rounds for the first time in their history, having finished third in Group 3 on 3 points, after beating Haiti 1-0, losing to Morocco 0-1 and then to Brazil 0-3.
Those results were not sufficient to secure a place among the best 8 third-placed teams from the 12 groups.
Since taking charge of Scotland in 2019, Clarke had led the team to qualification for 3 of 4 major tournaments, but exited all of them in the group stage, including Euro 2020 and Euro 2024.
The team also faced widespread criticism after scoring only 4 goals in 9 matches across those tournaments, while conceding 16.
The following day, Hong Myung-bo, the head coach of South Korea, resigned after the team's elimination in the group stage, despite having accumulated 3 points in Group 1.
South Korea had opened their campaign with a 2-1 win over the Czech Republic, before losing to Mexico and then to South Africa 0-1, failing to qualify as one of the best third-placed teams.
One day later, the Czech Football Association announced on 29 June the departure of Miroslav Koubek from the helm of the national team following elimination in the group stage, after 2 defeats against South Korea and Mexico, and a draw with South Africa.
On 1 July, Ronald Koeman submitted his resignation as Netherlands coach for the second time, following elimination in the round of 32 after a penalty shootout loss to Morocco.
Koeman confirmed in a statement published by the Dutch football association on Instagram that his decision came after a long period of work and a desire to devote time to his family.
Argentine Marcelo Bielsa also resigned as Uruguay coach following the team's first-round exit, after finishing third in their group on 2 points.
Sebastián Beccacece also announced his resignation as Ecuador coach following a 0-2 defeat to Mexico in the round of 32, stating that he had given everything he had with the national team.
Meanwhile, the German Football Association announced on Friday that Julian Nagelsmann had resigned as head coach of the senior national team following elimination in the round of 32 against Paraguay on penalties, as moves began to negotiate with Jürgen Klopp to succeed him.
This may not be the final chapter in the saga of managerial departures, as the coming rounds could see further coaching changes as the 2026 World Cup continues.