Messi Set for Final Argentina Farewell as Benin Friendly Confirmed
Lionel Messi will make what is set to be his final Argentina appearance when the world champions meet Benin at the Monumental on October 6. The 39-year-old has already announced his international retirement, but Lionel Scaloni has included him in the squad for one last occasion, with the friendly arranged as a farewell to the national-team captain.
Messi arrives at the closing stage of his Argentina career after an outstanding sixth World Cup campaign. His final match will come at the end of a three-game friendly programme during the current FIFA window, beginning against Bolivia at Córdoba’s Mario Alberto Kempes Stadium on September 30. Argentina then return to Buenos Aires to face Burkina Faso at the Monumental on October 3 before the Benin fixture at the same ground three days later.
The Inter Miami forward has marked the occasion with a specially produced Argentina shirt. He posted a video of the personalised jersey on Instagram on Monday, showing its back and writing: “One last match… A jersey for a lifetime.”
Across more than 20 years with the senior national side, Messi has played 207 times for Argentina, scoring 125 goals and supplying 68 assists. Those numbers place him at the top of Argentina’s all-time records in several major categories, while his influence has extended far beyond the statistics.
His international honours include Olympic gold in 2008, Copa América triumphs in 2021 and 2024, and the 2022 Finalissima. The defining achievement came in Qatar in 2022, when Messi led Argentina to the World Cup and completed a career that had long been measured against the game’s greatest. The October 6 meeting with Benin is expected to provide the formal final chapter for one of the country’s most decorated players.
