Sport in Tunisia

Football is the most popular sport in Tunisia. The most watched sports in Tunisia are football, handball, basketball, volleyball, tennis, and rugby union.

Sport is encouraged in school, and local sports clubs receive financial support from the local governments.

The national stadium is the Stade Olympique de Radès.

Football

Main article: Football in Tunisia

Football is the most popular sport in Tunisia. The Tunisia national football team, also known as "The Eagles of Carthage", won the 2004 African Cup of Nations (CAN) which was held in Tunisia. They also represented Africa in the 2005 Confederations Cup which was held in Germany, but they could not go beyond the first round. The Eagles of Carthage have participated in four FIFA World Cup Championships.

The Premier Football League is the "Tunisian Ligue Professionnelle 1". The main clubs are Espérance Sportive de Tunis, Club Africain, Sfaxian Sportive Club and Étoile du Sahel. The latter team participated in the 2008 World Cup for Clubs and reached the semi-final match, in which it was eliminated by Boca Juniors from Argentina. Tunisias star player is centre forward Issam Jemaa and left back Ahmed Seliet

Handball

Handball is the second most popular sport in Tunisia. The Tunisia national handball team has participated in several Handball World Championships. In 2005, Tunisia held the 2005 Handball World Championship, and they came fourth. The national league consists of about 12 teams, with Etoile du Sahel and Espérance Sportive de Tunis dominating. The most famous Tunisian handball player is Wissem Hmam. In the 2005 World Men's Handball Championship in Tunis, Wissem Hmam was ranked as the top scorer of the tournament. The Tunisian national handball team won the African Cup 9 times as a record, being the team dominating the competition. The Tunisians won the 2012 African Cup in Morocco for the 2nd Consecutive time and it is the 9th title at all by defeating Algeria in the final.

Basketball

Tunisia recently celebrated a revival in basketball when its national team won the 2011 FIBA Africa Championship, a title rarely won by North African nations. Since then, Tunisia has been home to several players in the Spanish ACB, which is often regarded as one of the world's strongest basketball leagues.

Tennis

In tennis, Tunisia holds a tournament called Tunis Open.

Cycling

Cycling is a popular recreational sport, with the Tour de Tunisia, being the main annual competition of Cycling in Tunisia.

Pétanque

Pétanque is mostly played in the north of Tunisia. Tunisia has won the world championship many times.

See also

References

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