Lionel Messi has announced his retirement from the Argentina national team and this brings an end to one of the most remarkable international careers in football history. He announced this decision in an emotional statement shared on Monday. The Inter Miami star confirmed he will no longer play international after a career of more than two decades of service. The decision comes almost six weeks after Argentina’s defeat to Spain in the 2026 World Cup final. Messi revealed he wrote the words on July 21, just two days after that match and felt even more certain following the recent passing of his father, Jorge.
“After all this time since the final, and after thinking about it a lot, I want to tell everyone that I’m retiring from the national team,” Messi said. “It was a decision that hurt and still hurts deep inside, but I understand that this is the right moment.”
Messi also reflected on giving everything for the shirt through both victories and earlier struggles and shared his pride in the joy the team brought fans and acknowledging the talented young players ready to step forward.
“Thank you for all the love during these 20 years. I’m going to miss hearing you from the inside. Now I’ll be one of you, always supporting from the outside, in the good times and even more in the bad ones. I leave with peace and pride, knowing that together with my teammates we gave you moments we once dreamed of. It was crazy to experience all of this with you. I love you! Thank you God for making me Argentine. Vamos Argentina!”
Lionel Messi’s Career and Achievements with Argentina
Lionel Messi’s journey with Argentina started in 2005. Over the last two decades he became Argentina's most-capped player and all-time leading scorer with more than 125 goals in 207 matches. He just could not get success early on with respect to winning big titles including World Cup final defeat in 2014 and multiple Copa America heartbreaks. He captained Argentina to Copa America titles in 2021 and 2024 which ended a long trophy drought. The biggest moment of his career came in Qatar 2022, when Messi lifted the World Cup and claimed the Golden Ball. That win along with the later continental win transformed his international legacy. His success with Argentina makes his career even more special.
Even in the 2026 final loss, he remained a key figure in a campaign that reached the biggest final once more. Messi broke records in that tournament as he finished the tournament with eight goals which took his all-time World Cup tally to 21 and placed him second on the historic list behind Kylian Mbappe. This campaign also included a first-ever World Cup hat-trick against Algeria followed by a brace against Austria. At 39 he still produced plenty of moments of pure magic, breaking records for most appearances. Messi will continue playing club football for Inter Miami while supporting Argentina from the stands.
