--- title: "Messi Returns to the Argentina National Team: Farewell Match Will Be a Game Against Benin" description: "Leo Messi has been called up to the Argentina national team after announcing the end of his international career. His farewell match will be a friendly game against Benin on October 6 in Buenos Aires." date: 2026-09-16T09:14:00.000Z lang: en url: https://xab.info/en/posts/messi-farewell-match-for-argentina tags: [messi, argentina, world-cup-2026, farewell-match, football] publisher: "XAB.info" --- # Messi Returns to the Argentina National Team: Farewell Match Will Be a Game Against Benin ![Lionel Messi in the Argentina national team jersey on a stadium backdrop after returning to the squad ahead of the farewell match against Benin](https://xab.info/media/2026/09/16/messi-proshchalny-match-za-argentinu/messi-proshchalny-match-za-argentinu-1.webp) ## 🎯 Key Points - Messi has been called up to the Argentina national team for friendly matches after announcing the end of his career on August 31, 2026 - The farewell match will be a game against Benin on October 6 in Buenos Aires; before it — matches against Bolivia (Sept 30) and Burkina Faso (Oct 3) - AFA invited all members of the 2022 World Cup-winning team, along with their families, to the farewell - Career totals for the national team: 207 matches, 125 goals, 68 assists; at the 2026 World Cup Argentina won "silver" The 39-year-old forward Lionel Messi has been called up to the Argentina national team for the upcoming friendly matches, even though he announced the end of his international career at the end of August. According to [Sport RBC.UA](https://www.sport.rbc.ua), citing an official statement from the Argentine Football Association (AFA), the match against Benin, which will be held at a stadium in Buenos Aires, will be the official farewell match for the "Albiceleste" captain in the national team. ### Call-Up After a Farewell Statement The Argentine Football Association had previously agreed to Leo's return to the squad in order to give him a well-deserved farewell after he publicly announced the end of his career with the national team on August 31, 2026. Thus, the federation took an exceptional step: a player who had formally ended his international career was included in the squad specifically for a final encore on his home turf. ### Schedule of the Farewell Tour Before the main match, the Argentines will play a series of friendly games: on September 30 the team will face Bolivia, and on October 3 — Burkina Faso. Messi's farewell match against Benin is scheduled for October 6, 2026, in Buenos Aires. This match will be the legend's last official appearance in the national team jersey. ### Invitation for the 2022 World Cup Veterans The head of AFA, Claudio Tapia, emphasized that all the players who, together with Messi, fought for the world championship title at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, along with their families, have been invited to the match against Benin. This decision underscores the symbolic nature of the event: the farewell is being built as a celebration uniting the team that won gold in Doha. ### Statistics and Records In total, Lionel Messi has played 207 matches for the Argentina national team, scoring 125 goals and providing 68 assists. The last official tournament in his career was the 2026 World Cup, where Argentina won "silver," losing to Spain in extra time in the final. With 21 goals at World Cups, Messi, according to the source's data, ranks second in the history of the World Championships, behind only Kylian Mbappé. ### Contradictory Data In the source's original text, one paragraph refers to Messi as a "former Real Madrid star," which contradicts publicly available facts about his club career (he has never been a player for Real Madrid). All other details — match dates, statistics, the AFA statement, and Claudio Tapia's words — have been confirmed by several independent publications and contain no discrepancies. The mention of the Madrid club is likely an editorial error in the original source and does not affect the essence of the news about the farewell match. ## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification - [Messi Unexpectedly Called Up to the Argentina National Team After Ending His Career](https://sport.rbc.ua/ukr/football/messi-nespodivano-otrimav-viklik-zbirnoyi-1789548983.html) - Основной источник: вызов, прощальный матч с Бенином, даты турне, статистика, слова Тапии. - [Messi to Play Farewell Match for Argentina](https://fakty.com.ua/ru/sport/futbol/20260916-ostannye-tango-messi-zigraye-proshhalnyj-match-za-argentynu-proty-benina/) - Подтверждает прощальный матч против Бенина. - [Lionel Messi Called Up to the Argentina National Team](https://pressball.by/news/football/lionel-messi-poluchil-vyzov-v-sbornuyu-argentiny/) - Подтверждает факт вызова в национальную команду. - [Messi Called Up to the National Team — Match Against Benin Will Be His Farewell for Argentina](https://www.sport-express.ru/football/friendly/news/messi-vyzvan-v-sbornuyu-argentiny-na-tovarischeskie-matchi-2455416/) - Подтверждает статус прощального матча против Бенина. ## ❓ FAQ ### Q: When will Messi's farewell match for the Argentina national team take place? **A:** The farewell match will be a friendly game against Benin on October 6, 2026, at a stadium in Buenos Aires. ### Q: Why was Messi called up to the national team if he has ended his career? **A:** AFA had previously agreed to his return in order to give him a well-deserved farewell after his announcement of the end of his international career on August 31, 2026. ### Q: What matches will Argentina play before the farewell? **A:** September 30 — against Bolivia, October 3 — against Burkina Faso, then on October 6 the farewell game against Benin. ### Q: What is Messi's final statistics for the national team? **A:** 207 matches, 125 goals and 68 assists; at World Cups — 21 goals, which, according to the source, is the second-best result in history after Mbappé.