Messi set for final Argentina farewell
Shafaq News- Buenos Aires
Lionel Messi is set to make his 208th and final appearance for Argentina on Tuesday when the national team hosts Benin in a farewell friendly at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires.
The 39-year-old announced his international retirement after Argentina lost 1-0 to Spain in the 2026 World Cup final. The Argentine Football Association later invited him back for one final match, with AFA President Claudio Tapia describing it as a deserved farewell for the national team captain.
Messi enters the game with 207 senior appearances and 125 goals, both Argentina records. He has played in six World Cups and holds the men’s tournament record with 34 appearances.
His senior international career began against Hungary on August 17, 2005, the same year he helped Argentina win the FIFA U20 World Cup. He later won Olympic gold in Beijing in 2008 but endured a long wait for a senior international title.
Argentina lost the 2007 Copa América final to Brazil, the 2014 World Cup final to Germany, and consecutive Copa América finals against Chile in 2015 and 2016. After the 2016 defeat, Messi briefly retired from international football before reversing the decision weeks later.
His first major senior title came in 2021, when Argentina beat Brazil at the Maracanã to win the Copa América. Argentina followed with the Finalissima and World Cup in 2022 before defending its Copa América title in 2024.
Messi returned for a sixth World Cup in 2026 and helped Argentina reach the final, ending the tournament with 21 career World Cup goals and becoming the first player to start three men’s World Cup finals, in 2014, 2022, and 2026.
Tuesday’s match will close a 21-year international career highlighted by the 2022 World Cup, two Copa América titles, the 2022 Finalissima, and Argentina’s records for appearances and goals.
