Lionel Messi announces second international retirement

Lionel Messi said on August 31 that he is retiring from Argentina’s national team, ending an international career that included the 2022 World Cup title and a return from his first retirement in 2016. FIFA said Messi made the announcement official on Monday through an Instagram post. ESPN reported the post included a handwritten note in Spanish and confirmed the 39-year-old was stepping away from international soccer. The timing in the source material differs from the social framing in this story prompt. FIFA’s account says Messi wrote the letter on July 21, two days after Argentina’s 1-0 loss to Spain in the 2026 World Cup final, and published it on August 31 after the death of his father, Jorge Messi, on August 8. (fifa.com) ### Did Messi actually announce this “today”? August 31 is the date attached to the verified retirement announcement in the materials reviewed. FIFA published its story on August 31 and said Messi “made the news official on Monday via his Instagram account,” while ESPN’s report is also dated August 31. (fifa.com) September 2 social posts appear to be recirculating that announcement rather than documenting a new statement. In the sources reviewed, no fresh statement from Messi on September 2 and no separate retirement release from the Argentine Football Association were available. ### What did Messi say in the announcement? (fifa.com) Messi wrote that he wanted “to let everyone know that I am retiring from the Argentina national team,” according to FIFA’s reproduction of the post. He added that the decision “hurt — and still hurts deep down — but I understand that the time has come.” (fifa.com) The same statement said, “I’ve given everything I had; I have nothing left to give,” and thanked supporters, teammates, coaches and family. FIFA reported that Messi ended the note by saying he would now support Argentina “from the outside.” ### Why are people calling this his second international retirement? (fifa.com) June 2016 was the first time Messi retired from Argentina after the Copa America final loss to Chile. He later reversed that decision and returned to the national team, eventually leading Argentina to Copa America titles in 2021 and 2024, the 2022 Finalissima and the 2022 World Cup. AFA’s official June 22 tribute to Messi lists those later titles as part of his national-team record. (fifa.com) That history is why current posts describe this as a second retirement. The new announcement follows Argentina’s defeat in the 2026 World Cup final, rather than a tournament win or a routine squad decision. ### What does the record show about the career he is leaving behind? Messi finished as Argentina’s most capped player and all-time leading men’s scorer, according to ESPN. (afa.com.ar) ESPN said he scored 125 goals in 207 appearances for the national team. AFA’s official site described Messi in June as the captain and emblem of the national team and listed his Argentina honors from the 2005 Under-20 World Cup through the 2024 Copa America. (fifa.com) That page was published before the retirement announcement, but it shows the federation’s latest reviewed official profile of his place in Argentina’s history. (espn.com) ### Has Argentina’s federation confirmed it separately? The AFA page reviewed for this story was a June 22 birthday tribute, not a retirement notice. In the materials examined, AFA had not yet published a separate statement confirming Messi’s retirement. FIFA and ESPN both treated Messi’s Instagram post as the operative announcement. (afa.com.ar) Any next formal step would likely be an AFA statement, squad update or tribute on the federation’s official channels. (fifa.com)