Argentine football icon Lionel Messi ended his international career with Argentina in the most fitting way, with a goal, two assists and a commanding 3-0 win over Benin at the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires. The emotional farewell on Tuesday night left thousands of supporters in tears as one of football's greatest players said goodbye to the Argentina shirt after more than two decades of service.
The farewell match was far more than a team's final score. More than 85,000 fans took to the Monumental to celebrate Messi, who has been the man of the hour for Argentina with his extraordinary achievements and difficult times, but also the one who will go down as the great man in history. The moment was to honor the man who changed the game of Argentina and the man who finally brought the biggest titles to Argentina.
Messi's last match for Argentina was against Benin in a friendly that quickly turned into an emotional tribute. The 39-year-old captain was visibly moved even before kickoff and wiped away tears as he walked toward the stadium. Inside the Monumental, a giant Argentina No. 10 jersey with the message “Gracias” was displayed in front of the fans who roared for their captain.
The match itself was the perfect sporting conclusion. Argentina finally broke through after halftime, with the veteran defender Nicolás Otamendi opening the scoring. Messi was at the heart of that move and took the first goal, and then it was another to Nico Paz. He had a chance to write his name on the score sheet, and he took a penalty in the 71st minute to score Argentina's third goal.
The goal was Messi's 126th for Argentina and came in his record-extending 208th appearance for the national team. His last international match thus added another chapter to a statistical record that already places him at the summit of Argentine football. He finished his national team career as Argentina's most-capped player and the leading scorer.
🚨Argentina's football star Lionel Messi bids farewell to football after his final match against Benin, securing a win, and leaving fans in tears https://t.co/EYTfoIKADp
— The Tatva (@thetatvaindia) October 7, 2026
But statistics did not capture the significance of the evening. When the final whistle went, the stadium roared and howled in celebration. The fans who had followed Messi from his teenage years through years of heartbreak and triumph had the opportunity to thank him in person.
Messi's international journey was not always easy. He was under enormous pressure for years to replicate the club success with the national team. Argentina suffered painful defeats in big competitions, and Messi even withdrew from international football for a week after the Copa America final in 2016. But he came back and led the country to a Copa America title in 2021, the Finalissima in 2022 and, perhaps most importantly, the FIFA World Cup in Qatar in 2022.
World Cup victory changed Messi’s international image forever. The man who had been criticized for not winning a major trophy with Argentina became the conductor who took the country’s third World Cup title. His success also put him among Argentina’s greatest football players.
The farewell ceremony was full of that legacy. Messi was accompanied by his kids and his family, and a lot of Argentina's historic World Cup-winning generations watched from the stands. A drone display later lit up the sky above the stadium and made the night even more emotional for Messi to mark his contributions to Argentine football.
The farewell also had a sense of transition. Argentina now has to move on without the player who wore the No. 10 shirt for so long. Younger stars will eventually have to carry the team's hopes, but replacing Messi's influence, leadership and extraordinary consistency will be an enormous task.
Messi’s Argentine farewell does not necessarily mean he has retired from professional football. He is still under contract with Inter Miami, so fans can still see Messi’s old football career on a club level. His Buenos Aires sendoff was, in fact, the end of his international career with Argentina.
As Messi left the Argentina shirt for the last time, the emotion in the Monumental told the story. The fans were not just saying goodbye to a footballer. For more than 21 years, they were saying thanks to the player who supported them so much in defeat, delivered memorable wins and finally took the World Cup home.
Argentina won 3-0. Messi got the goal. Messi assisted twice. But the most moving image of the night was the sentimental goodbye of a football legend to the country he represented for more than two decades. Messi’s career in Argentina has ended — but his legacy will never end.
