Messi ends 208-cap Argentina career: the red card debut, corruption claims and World Cup glory

Lionel Messi will make his 208th and final appearance for Argentina in a friendly against Benin at the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires, ending an international career that stretched across more than two decades and delivered three major trophies.

The 37-year-old — who turns 38 in June — will continue playing club football with MLS side Inter Miami, but Wednesday’s match marks the definitive close of his chapter with La Albiceleste.

A debut to forget

Argentina supporters were fortunate not to judge Messi too harshly on his senior debut. In 2005, the then-18-year-old was introduced from the bench in a friendly against Hungary, replacing Lisandro Lopez in the 64th minute. Seconds later, referee Markus Merk sent him off for violent conduct after his arm caught Hungarian defender Vilmos Vanczak in the face. Argentina won 2-1, but it was far from the entrance of a future legend.

Inheriting Maradona’s number

By 2009, Messi had accumulated 20 goal contributions in 36 appearances and was rewarded with the iconic No. 10 shirt, vacated by the retiring Juan Roman Riquelme. The man who handed it to him was none other than Diego Maradona, then Argentina’s manager, who declared: “Messi is my Maradona. There is no other player more important than Messi. I could say that in my team, there is Messi and 10 others.”

Yet the shirt’s weight proved difficult to carry at major tournaments early on. At the 2010 World Cup, Messi managed only one assist as Argentina were eliminated at the quarter-final stage with a 4-0 defeat to Germany. A year later at the Copa America, he failed to score as Argentina lost to Uruguay on penalties in the last eight.

Golden Ball without the ultimate prize

Messi’s form between the 2010 and 2014 World Cups was prolific, and he captained Argentina to the final in Brazil, scoring four goals and adding an assist along the way. He was awarded the Golden Ball as the tournament’s best player, though the honour felt hollow after Germany claimed the trophy with a 1-0 extra-time victory in the final.

Further final defeats at the 2015 and 2016 Copa Americas prompted Messi to announce his international retirement in 2016, only to reverse that decision weeks later.

Corruption allegations and Copa controversy

Messi’s Argentina career was not without its flashpoints off the pitch. Following Argentina’s Copa America semi-final exit in 2019, he made pointed allegations about corruption and cheating in the tournament, remarks that drew a response from CONMEBOL and cast a shadow over South American football’s governing body.

The trophies that defined a legacy

The redemption arc arrived emphatically. Messi finally ended Argentina’s 28-year wait for a major title by lifting the Copa America in 2021, before captaining the side to World Cup glory at Qatar 2022 — a tournament widely regarded as the greatest individual performance in the competition’s history. A second Copa America followed in 2024.

His 208 caps and international goal tally cement his place as Argentina’s greatest ever player, and the farewell in Buenos Aires brings down the curtain on one of sport’s most extraordinary careers.