A football pundit, Yanina Latorre, has said that Lionel Messi told his Argentina teammates he was retiring from the national team before their game against Spain on Sunday.
La Albiceleste were trying to win two World Cup titles in a row, but their hopes were broken by a goal from Ferran Torres in the second half of the extra time.
Messi, who had been the team’s key player throughout the tournament, did not perform well on the day as Lionel Scaloni’s team was beaten by the current world champions.
Messi was playing in his sixth competition when he turned 39 halfway through, which is likely to be his final tournament, since the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner will be 43 by the next World Cup.
Yanina, a journalist, said the Argentine team leader told his teammates he was planning to stop playing internationally before the match against Spain at the New York New Jersey Stadium on Sunday.
He has not officially announced his retirement yet but according to the pundit, Messi gave a goodbye speech in the dressing room, resulting in the squad shedding tears, and then he encouraged them to forget about it and concentrate on the game.
“I already told it on the radio. Nothing happened, it was Messi’s farewell speech in the locker room. The end of the Messi era with the national team, and everyone broke down. It was all very emotional and it’s logical, they’re human beings,” Yanina wrote on X.
In September 2025, Lionel Messi received a farewell after participating in his last competitive match for Argentina, which resulted in a 3-0 victory against Venezuela in World Cup qualifying. This indicated that the 2026 tournament might be his final appearance with La Albiceleste.
However, his recent performance at the concluded Mundial demonstrated that the Inter Miami star still possesses significant capabilities. With eight goals and four assists across eight matches, he narrowly missed securing the Golden Ball and Golden Boot, finishing behind Spain’s Rodri and France’s Kylian Mbappe, respectively.
It remains uncertain whether La Pulga will continue to don the national team colors.
He is still Argentina’s all-time leading scorer, boasting 125 goals and 68 assists in 207 appearances.