Lionel Messi Announces Retirement From International Football
Argentine superstar Lionel Messi has taken retirement from international football.
Published : August 31, 2026 at 8:55 PM IST
Hyderabad: Argentinian superstar Lionel Messi has announced retirement from the international football. The world-class forward announced his decision to bid adieu to his international career on his social media handle. The 39-year-old posted a farewell not on his Instagram handle.
“After all this time since the final, and after thinking about it a lot, I want to tell everyone that I’m retiring from the national team. It was a decision that hurt and still hurts deep inside, but I understand that this is the right moment. There isn’t much time left, and different chapters are coming to an end. This is one that hurts me a lot. I love, I loved, and I will always love being part of the national team. I gave everything I had, and I don’t have anything more to give," he wrote on his Instagram handle.
🚨🇦🇷 BREAKING: Lionel Messi statement to announce retirement from professional football.
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 31, 2026
“After all this time since the final, and after thinking about it a lot, I want to tell everyone that I’m retiring from the national team…
"It was a decision that hurt and still hurts deep… pic.twitter.com/tUc8a4upHM
Messi mentioned in his note that there are some young players in the roster who deserve to be in the national team and thanked his family and fans for the support they provided.
"Also, there are great young players coming through who deserve to be here," he added.
"Thank you for all the love during these 20 years. I’m going to miss hearing you from the inside. Now I’ll be one of you, always supporting from the outside, in the good times and even more in the bad ones. Thank you to my family for always being there and for being with me throughout this beautiful but difficult journey. Thank you to every coach, teammate and director I had the chance to share it with. I take with me unforgettable memories and moments."
A few days back, Lionel Messi's father, Jorge Messi, passed away on August 8 at the age of 68. Messi revealed in his note that he wrote the retirement note on July 21 and the demise of his father confirmed his decision.
"Vamos Argentina! I wrote these words on July 21, two days after the final. Today, after what happened with my dad, I’m even more convinced of this decision than before," he added.
Messi was part of the Argentina squad in the FIFA World Cup 2026 where the team lost to Spain by 1-0 in the final.Notably, he retired from the international football for the second time. In 2016, he had retired from the international football after losing the Copa América final to Chile.
