By Dorcas Francis Koji
Lionel Messi has been named in Argentina’s squad for a farewell match against Benin that is expected to mark the end of his remarkable international career.
Argentina Football Association president Claudio Tapia confirmed on Tuesday that the national team captain will feature in the October 6 fixture at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires.
Tapia said the occasion would allow Messi to receive a deserved farewell in front of Argentina’s home supporters after more than two decades of international service.
“We invited the best player in the world to play, our captain Lionel Andres Messi, to have a deserved farewell on October 6, here in Argentina,” Tapia said in a video posted on Instagram.
The Benin encounter will come after Argentina’s fixtures against Bolivia and Burkina Faso during the September-October international window.
The world champions are scheduled to face Bolivia in Córdoba on September 30 before meeting Burkina Faso at the Monumental on October 3. Three days later, they will return to the same venue to take on Benin.
Messi had previously indicated that he intended to bring his international career to an end. His retirement announcement on August 31 brought a reported end to a more than two-decade journey with the Argentina senior team.
The 39-year-old leaves behind an extraordinary international legacy, having captained Argentina to major titles including the 2021 Copa América, 2022 FIFA World Cup and 2024 Copa América.
His journey with the national team also included difficult moments, notably defeats in the 2014 World Cup final and the Copa América finals of 2015 and 2016, before he eventually helped Argentina end their long wait for major international silverware.
Messi’s final chapter comes after Argentina’s 1-0 defeat to Spain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, which ended their hopes of successfully defending the world title they won in Qatar in 2022.
The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain forward departs international football as Argentina’s captain and one of the most decorated figures in the country’s football history.
The October 6 meeting with Benin is therefore set to be a special occasion at the Monumental, giving Messi the opportunity to wear the Argentina shirt one final time before saying goodbye to the supporters who have followed his extraordinary international journey.
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