Lionel Messi announces retirement from Argentina national team after 2026 World Cup final

File Pic - Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the trophy after winning the World Cup in 2022. (AP/PTI Photo)

It was morning in Miami and late evening in India as Lionel Messi’s announcement through an Instagram post flooded social media. Having seen him light up our lives for two decades, the world suddenly felt strangely empty, unfamiliar. His great rival Cristiano Ronaldo must feel so lonely today. “After all this time since the (2026 World Cup) final, and after thinking about it a lot, I want to tell everyone I’m retiring from the national team…” The post showed three handwritten pages in Spanish, in which the Argentina captain confirmed he is retiring from the Albiceleste. As a footnote, he added: “I wrote these words on July 21, two days after the final. Today, after what happened with my dad, I am even more convinced than before.” Messi’s father, Jorge Messi, died on Aug 8 at a hospital in the central Argentine city of Rosario. He was 68. “It was a decision that hurt and still hurts deep inside, but I understand that this is the right moment.”

Lionel Messi in numbers

Messi is 39, and after two decades of watching him adorn the hallowed blue-and-white striped shirt, many will lament his decision to go, but no one can question it. Having lit up six World Cups, winning the tournament in Qatar 2022 and leading Argentina to the final in 2014 and 2026 — an incredible journey from wunderkind to the champion elder of the beautiful game — he held the world in a thrall. For over a decade, modern football was defined by the transcendent rivalry between Messi and the Portugal superstar Cristiano, an era-defining battle that eclipsed clubs, countries, and competitions. It was unbelievable theatre. It had to end someday. Even in a life as hallowed as his, such a difficult call needs a real breaking point. Exactly 10 years ago, after the 2016 Copa America final loss to Chile, Messi had called it a day, frustrated at the world, Argentina’s cursed fortunes and, somewhat unbelievably, in doubt about his abilities. An outpouring of concern from his team, earnest pleas from countrymen — and the rest of the world — forced a reversal. His words then were telling.

Lionel Messi in numbers

“A lot of things went through my mind on the night of the final and I gave serious thought to quitting, but my love for my country and this shirt is too great. We need to fix many things in Argentinian football, but I prefer to do this from inside and not criticise from outside.” Things didn’t change immediately, though. Argentina’s World Cup debacle in Russia 2018, with Messi further cutting a lonely, isolated figure, as Luka Modric first, and then Mbappe, then only 18, tore through his team, only reinforced the sinking feeling that it was not to be. Slowly, though, it changed. New coach, old teammate Lionel Scaloni structured the team around him, gave him the freedom, appreciation and confidence he needed. All this, with a band of adoring, talented players around him. What followed was a monumental Copa America triumph — beating Neymar’s Brazil 1-0 at the famed Maracana, the same venue where he first lost a final in 2014 — marking his first major international trophy. Qatar would prove his high noon, a series of dazzling, often otherworldly performances that would earn him the World Cup winner’s medal that he so richly deserved and that had eluded him for so long. It sanctified his seat in the pantheon. This summer, in America, too, the highest-scoring man in South American football history led Argentina to the final before a young Spain proved insurmountable. Messi calls time as his country’s all-time leading goal scorer and most capped player. In 2016, Messi’s first announcement had sprung from the failures on the pitch and repeated questions on his loyalty to Argentina. But he just chipped away to finally turn things on their head. The heartbreak of the 2014 Maracana final and a string of continental disappointments had weighed heavily on him. In 2016, after blasting his penalty over the bar in the Copa America Centenario final against Chile, his call to quit international football was emotional and abrupt. “I tried so hard to be champion with Argentina. I couldn’t do it,” Messi had rued.

Lionel Messi for Argentina

But Argentina wasn’t ready to let him go. “No te vayas” — don’t go — became the weeping cry of a nation desperate to hold on to him. Messi gave himself a second chance.

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From being a prisoner of ‘dependencia’ — Argentina’s dependence on him — to the bearer of the proverbial cross, Messi’s ‘back nine’ expedition was sprinkled with trophies. Usually reticent, unwilling to pour out his heart, Messi redefined himself in his last World Cup. After scoring his first World Cup hat-trick against Algeria and launching Argentina’s title defence, Messi opened up. “Everything I’m experiencing now is a bonus. I’ve been fortunate enough to achieve all my dreams — or even more than I ever dreamed of achieving — both professionally and personally.” Two months down the line and a bereavement must have precipitated that lack of meaning and motivation. Not like the prince of Denmark, who sought revenge to restore order in a distorted world, though. More akin to calm of mind, all passion spent. Of course the universe of football will be asking for more, but Messi’s personal loss, perhaps, asked for a realignment. Argentina must learn to live with it.

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