List of worst World Cup performances

Tunisia's World Cup journey concluded with a dismal performance, ending with zero points and a substantial minus-10 goal difference following their 3-1 defeat to the Netherlands. This outcome places them among a list of teams that have historically struggled to secure any points while suffering significant goal deficits in the group stage.

The article highlights several such teams, including North Korea in 2010, which lost all three games with a -12 goal difference. Saudi Arabia in 2002 also failed to score, conceding 12 goals and losing to Germany, Cameroon, and the Republic of Ireland. Greece in 1994 experienced a similar fate, losing all matches without scoring and a -10 goal difference.

El Salvador in 1982 suffered the heaviest defeat in World Cup history, a 10-1 loss to Hungary, contributing to their -13 goal difference. New Zealand and Mexico in 1982 and 1978, respectively, both ended with -12 goal differences. Zaire (now the Democratic Republic of Congo) in 1974 conceded 14 goals without scoring, while Haiti also conceded 14 goals in the same tournament.

South Korea holds the unwanted record for the worst World Cup performance, with a -16 goal difference from their 1954 campaign. They lost their inaugural match 9-0 to Hungary and their second game 7-0, marking a historically poor showing in the tournament.