Has Lionel Messi retired? Latest on future plans after Argentina farewell

Lionel Messi bid an emotional farewell to international football as he made his last-ever appearance for Argentina.

It was a fitting end to an astonishing international career that finished with 126 goals in 208 senior caps and included one World Cup triumph and two Copa America crowns.

Only Cristiano Ronaldo has made more international appearances and scored more goals than Messi, who will go down as arguably the greatest footballer ever to step foot on the pitch.

Has Lionel Messi retired?

Yes - but only from international football. Tuesday night’s friendly against Benin at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires - home of Argentine giants River Plate - was the 208th and final cap of Messi’s illustrious Argentina career.

Messi did not play in Argentina’s previous two friendlies during this extended three-week international break, against Burkina Faso and Bolivia, instead choosing the Benin game as his last for his country.

208 and out: Lionel Messi soaks up the adulation of the fans during his final appearance for Argentina

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However, Messi has not yet hung up his boots at club level. The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain superstar remains contracted to Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise Inter Miami, where he arrived in the summer of 2023 on a deal that initially ran until the end of 2025.

So don’t worry Messi fans, there should be plenty more highlights to come for your idol yet as he looks to add to the four trophies he has won in the United States so far.

How many goals has Lionel Messi scored?

Messi, after providing two earlier assists for Nicolas Otamendi and Nico Paz, scored Argentina’s final goal against Benin from the penalty spot, meaning he finished for Argentina with an astonishing record of 126 goals in 208 senior appearances.

That is 61 caps more than Argentina’s second-highest appearance maker of all time, Javier Mascherano, and 80 more goals than their second-highest scorer, Gabriel Batistuta, who netted 56 times in 78 caps between 1991-2002.

Having finally completed his quest for World Cup glory in Qatar in 2022, Messi is one of only three Argentine captains ever to lift the biggest prize in football - along with his idol Diego Maradona and Daniel Passarella.

Ronaldo is also the only man to score more international goals than Messi, with 146.

Long wait over: Lionel Messi finally got his hands on the World Cup trophy in 2022

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Has Lionel Messi retired before?

Messi initially retired from international football after Argentina lost the 2016 Copa America final to Chile. He missed a penalty in the shootout in what was the Albiceleste’s fourth major final loss

"For me, the national team is over," Messi said at the time. "I've done all I can. It hurts not to be a champion.

"It's been four finals, I tried. It was the thing I wanted the most, but I couldn't get it, so I think it's over.

"I think this is best for everyone. First of all for me, then for everyone.

“I think there's a lot of people who want this, who obviously are not satisfied, as we are not satisfied reaching a final and not winning it.

“It's very hard, but the decision is taken. Now I will not try more and there will be no going back."

However, Messi reversed that decision less than two months later as he returned during qualifying for the 2018 World Cup “for the love of the country”.

What trophies did Lionel Messi win with Argentina?

Messi went on to earn a further 95 caps during the next decade and scored 71 more goals, ending his wait for international glory with the 2022 World Cup triumph and Copa America titles in 2021 and 2024, plus the Finalissima success in 2022.

As a prodigious youngster, Messi won the FIFA World Youth Championship with Argentina in 2005 and a gold medal at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.