Lionel Messi to make final Argentina appearance against Benin

Lionel Messi will play his final international match for Argentina when the world champions face Benin in a friendly in Buenos Aires this week.

The 39-year-old will make his farewell appearance for the side with which he won the 2022 World Cup, bringing his international career with the Albiceleste to an end.

Messi has won two Copa America titles, an Olympic gold medal and the World Cup with Argentina. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner decided to retire from international football after Argentina’s defeat in last summer’s World Cup final.

He will, however, wear the national team’s white and blue shirt one final time in an official international fixture, with the Argentine Football Association determined to give its captain a fitting send-off.

“ I want to announce to all Argentina national team supporters that, after consulting with manager Lionel Scaloni, we have decided to invite the best player in the world, the symbol of our national team and our captain, Lionel Andres Messi, for the farewell he deserves,” Argentine Football Association president Claudio Fabian Tapia said.

“Here, in Argentina.”

The final match of Messi’s international career will take place in the early hours of Tuesday 6 into Wednesday 7 October. Kick-off is scheduled for 1:00 BST, Dutch time, with Argentina facing Benin in a friendly.

The match will be played at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires, the home ground traditionally associated with River Plate. It will be Messi’s 208th appearance for Argentina.

He currently has 125 international goals, a record that will stand as part of his final statistics for the national team once the Benin match is complete.

Interest in the farewell has been intense, with every ticket for the fixture already sold. Messi is also set to wear a redesigned Argentina shirt for the occasion, featuring gold details.

After more than two decades representing his country, the match will mark the conclusion of Messi’s time in the Argentina shirt. His final appearance will come in the same city where the national federation has planned the farewell it believes he deserves.