Lionel Messi has called time on his international career.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At 39, the Argentina captain has closed the door on the national team after more than two decades in the blue and white, ending a journey that took him from early heartbreak to World Cup glory and, ultimately, one final World Cup final.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Messi announced the decision on Monday, saying the time had come and that he had given everything he had to Argentina.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His final appearance came in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final against Spain. Argentina lost 1\u20130 in extra time, leaving Messi with a second World Cup final defeat, after the loss to Germany in 2014.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
But the disappointment of the final does little to change what came before it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Messi leaves Argentina as the country\u2019s record appearance-maker and leading scorer, with 207 caps and 125 goals. He won the Copa Am\u00e9rica in 2021, lifted the World Cup in Qatar in 2022 and added another Copa Am\u00e9rica title in 2024.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There was a time when international football with Argentina seemed to bring him more pain than celebration. Finals were lost, criticism followed and, in 2016, Messi briefly announced his retirement before returning to the national team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The return changed everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The player who had spent years being asked when he would deliver a major international trophy eventually delivered three.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Africa has had its own moments with Messi along the way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nigeria became one of his most familiar World Cup opponents, while the 2026 tournament brought another memorable African chapter. Cape Verde, making its World Cup debut, pushed Argentina all the way to extra time in the round of 32 before losing 3\u20132. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Messi scored in that match, and his corner helped create Argentina\u2019s decisive late goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For Cape Verde, it was the end of a historic debut. For Messi, it was another page in what would become his final World Cup campaign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And now the international chapter is over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There will be no more Messi in Argentina\u2019s number 10 shirt, no more waiting for the next World Cup appearance, and no more wondering whether he will return for one more tournament. The boy from Rosario leaves the stage as a world champion, a record-holder and the man who finally brought Argentina back to the top of world football.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Twenty-one years after his Argentina debut, Lionel Messi has played his last game for the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The number 10 is moving on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Lionel Messi has called time on his international career. At 39, the Argentina captain has closed the door on the national team after more than two decades in the blue and white, ending a journey that took him from early heartbreak to World Cup glory and, ultimately, one final World Cup final. Messi announced the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1324,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,1],"tags":[475,141,325],"class_list":["post-1323","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","category-uncategorized","tag-messi","tag-sports","tag-worldcup"],"yoast_head":"\n