Veteran Argentina forward Lionel Messi arrived at his team’s training base in Eziza on Sunday ahead of his international farewell against Benin on Tuesday.
announced his retirement from international football on 31 August, just over a month after the FIFA World Cup 2026 ended.
Soon after the announcement, the (AFA) said that the Albiceleste’s home friendly against Benin in Buenos Aires on 6 October would be Messi’s farewell match.
“To all the fans of the Argentine national team, I would like to inform you that after a conversation I had with the head coach of the senior team, Lionel Scaloni, we decided to extend an invitation to the best player in the world, the symbol of our national team and our captain, Lionel Andrés Messi, so that he can receive the tribute and farewell he truly deserves on 6 October here in Argentina,” AFA president Claudio Tapia said via a video message on 16 September.
Messi, who made his debut in August 2005 in a friendly against Hungary, has scored 125 goals in 207 appearances.
His major achievements with Argentina include winning the FIFA World Cup in 2022 and also clinching the Copa America twice, in 2021 and 2024. Argentina finished as runners-up in the after suffering a 1-0 loss to Spain in the final at the New York New Jersey Stadium.
Messi scored eight goals and registered four assists during the 48-team tournament that was jointly hosted by the USA, Mexico and Canada.
The 39-year-old also broke the all-time goals record in FIFA World Cup history, surpassing former Germany international Miroslav Klose’s 16 goals.
However, Messi later lost that record to France’s Kylian Mbappe, who has scored 22 FIFA World Cup goals thus far. Messi, on the other hand, ended his World Cup career with 21 goals.
Nicolas Otamendi, Giovani Lo Celso and Rodrigo De Paul will be among the players who will feature with Messi in his final Argentina match. Leandro Paredes, who is serving a 10-match ban, will attend the match from the stands.
Paolo Dybala and Mahuel Nolina, however, won’t be able to attend the match, as their club, AS Roma, did not allow them to.
After his farewell match, Messi will return to the United States to rejoin his club Inter Miami.
