Argentina has included Lionel Messi in their squad for an October friendly against Benin, a match expected to serve as the forward’s farewell to international football.
In August, following Argentina’s loss to Spain in the 2026 World Cup final, Messi announced his retirement from international duty, having also said he was weighing up his future in football after the death of his father, Jorge.
The 39-year-old, who captained Argentina to their 2022 World Cup triumph, said the choice to stop representing La Albiceleste hurt him “deeply,” but that he had “given it my all” and had “nothing left to give.”
Messi, an eight-time Ballon d’Or winner now playing for Inter Miami, is Argentina’s all-time top scorer and most-capped player, with 125 goals in 207 appearances.
“We made the decision to invite the best player in the world, the symbol of our national team, our captain, Lionel Andres Messi, so that he can have the farewell he truly deserves on 6 October here in Argentina,” said Argentine FA president Claudio Tapia.
The match against Benin will be played at River Plate’s Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires, which holds 85,000 spectators.
Argentina’s 2022 World Cup-winning squad has also been invited to the game, which Tapia described as an “unforgettable” occasion.
Argentina were ordered to play their next two home matches at 50% capacity, with one match of that sanction suspended, for breaching the FIFA disciplinary code during the World Cup.
The punishment concerned using a sports event for demonstrations of a non-sporting nature, team misconduct, and discriminatory chants and gestures by its supporters.
After beating England 2-1 in the World Cup semi-final, several Argentina players held up a banner asserting Argentine sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, a British overseas territory.
With friendlies against Bolivia in Cordoba on 30 September and Burkina Faso in Buenos Aires on 3 October, the punishment should be served before the Benin game.
Argentina midfielders Leandro Paredes and teammate Nahuel Molina are not expected to feature, having received 10-game and seven-match suspensions, respectively, for their involvement in on-field clashes after their country’s defeat by Spain in the World Cup final.
