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Lionel Messi returns to Argentina squad for Benin friendly as football icon prepares for final international appearance
Lionel Messi had announced his retirement from international football on 31 August.
Just over two weeks after announcing his retirement from international football, Argentina star Lionel Messi has been named in the squad for the Albiceleste’s friendly against Benin in Buenos Aires on 6 October. The match is set to mark Messi’s final appearance for Argentina.
Messi announced his decision to retire from international football on 31 August, bringing an end to his illustrious career with the national team.
Claudio Tapia, president of the Argentine Football Association (AFA), said the friendly would provide an opportunity to give Messi a fitting farewell in front of the home crowd.
"To all Argentina fans, I want to tell you that after a conversation with the national team head coach, Lionel Scaloni, we have decided to invite the best player in the world, our national team emblem, our captain, Lionel Andrés Messi, so he can have the goodbye he truly deserves on Oct. 6 here in Argentina," he said via a video statement.
"At the same time, after Lionel accepted the invitation we decided to invite all the 2022 World Cup winners that played with him in Qatar so they can, with their families, join him in this match that will be unforgettable. We invite all Argentinians and national team fans to watch 'the last tango' of the best player in the world," Tapia added.
Messi made his senior Argentina debut in August 2005 as an 18-year-old, beginning an international career that would eventually make him the most-capped player and leading goalscorer in the history of the national team.
He has made 207 appearances for Argentina and the match against Benin will be his 208th. With 125 goals to his name, his international honours include the 2021 Copa America, the 2022 Finalissima, the 2022 FIFA World Cup and the 2024 Copa America.
He also won the FIFA U-20 World Cup in 2005 and an Olympic gold medal with Argentina at the 2008 Beijing Games.
The biggest achievement of Messi’s Argentina career came at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, where he captained Argentina to the title. He scored seven goals during the tournament and became the first player to score in the group stage, round of 16, quarter-final, semi-final and final of the same World Cup. He also won the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player.
Messi also holds several World Cup records. He played in six editions of the tournament — the same as Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo —and has made 34 World Cup appearances, the most in the competition's history. His 21 World Cup goals rank him second on the all-time list following the 2026 tournament, behind France’s Kylian Mbappe (22 goals).
Messi played in seven editions of the Copa America and made a record 39 appearances. After losing the finals in 2007, 2015 and 2016, he finally lifted the trophy in 2021 when Argentina defeated Brazil at the Maracana. He then helped Argentina retain the title in 2024.
The 2021 Copa America triumph was particularly significant in Messi’s international career as it ended Argentina’s long wait for a senior men's major trophy. The success was followed by victory over Italy in the 2022 Finalissima and then the World Cup triumph in Qatar later that year.
Messi's final major tournament with Argentina came at the 2026 World Cup. Argentina reached the final but lost 1-0 to Spain after extra time. Messi scored eight goals and provided four assists during the tournament.
With the 6 October fixture now confirmed, Messi will get one final opportunity to wear the Argentina shirt before bringing the curtain down on an international career that has spanned more than two decades.
PN Vishnu is a contributor with the LiveMint Sports team, where he primarily covers cricket, football and other major sporting events. A passionate sports journalist with nearly a decade of experience in digital media, Vishnu has been an ardent follower of sports for more than 10 years. While he enjoys covering a wide range of disciplines, his biggest sporting passions remain cricket and football. He is also a devoted supporter of Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Indian Premier League and Manchester United in English football. <br><br> Vishnu pursued a Post Graduate Diploma in Journalism from the Asian College of Journalism (ACJ), Chennai, in 2016 and graduated in 2017. Since then, he has built an extensive career in sports journalism, working with leading media organisations including Deccan Chronicle and Firstpost. In 2025, he worked for CricXtasy for six months before joining LiveMint in February 2026. <br><br> Over the years, he has reported extensively on marquee sporting events such as the Indian Premier League (IPL) and the Indian Super League (ISL). His reporting has also provided opportunities to interact with some of the game's leading personalities, including India cricketers Yuzvendra Chahal and Dhruv Jurel. <br><br> Away from the newsroom, Vishnu enjoys unwinding with books, discovering new music and binge-watching television series.