Messi’s last tango ends with the scoreline. Lionel Messi’s was about 85,000 people refusing to let a night end. On Tuesday, October 6, 2026, Argentina beat Benin 3-0 in Buenos Aires, but the match was really a tribute. Messi played his 208th and final game for his country and scored his 126th goal in it.
A night built around one player
The Argentine Football Association invited Messi back for a final appearance after he announced his international retirement, saying “the time has come.” More than 85,000 tickets for the Estadio Monumental sold out in 90 minutes and later resold for over $2,500. Players from Argentina’s 1978, 1986 and 2022 World Cup squads came with their families to join the tribute.
The tears started before kickoff. Messi was seen crying on the team bus as it moved through crowds lining the route. Later, he and coach Lionel Scaloni both wept during the national anthem, with Messi’s sons Thiago, Mateo and Ciro beside him in the lineup.
In the 10th minute, play stopped so the whole stadium could applaud the No. 10. Benin’s players queued up to shake his hand.
How Messi shaped the 3-0 win
Messi’s last tango ends but missed some early chances, and for a while it looked like the script might not be followed. He then set up two of the three goals. His corner was headed in by Nicolás Otamendi in the 48th minute, and a pass from him let Nico Paz curl in a second goal. In the 71st minute, he stroked a penalty into the roof of the net with his left foot for the final goal. The crowd answered with “Messi, Messi.”
Messi’s Last Tango Ends With a Goal
The speech that moved the stadium
After the final whistle, Messi spoke to the crowd with his teammates around him. He said playing for Argentina was the most beautiful thing that could happen to him, and that he would gladly keep coming back forever. He called the Monumental the place where he lived one of his happiest days, the homecoming match after the 2022 World Cup. Then he said goodbye, promised to support the team from the stands and ended with “Always, always united.”
He also spoke about the World Cup final loss to Spain, which he said took a heavy toll on him. He said his father, Jorge, was the person he was thinking of most that night. Jorge, who managed his career as his agent, died weeks after the tournament at 68.
A drone show then lit up the sky above the stadium with images from his career, including him holding the World Cup trophy in Qatar.
What Scaloni said
Scaloni said Argentina can build a strong squad around its new players, but nobody he has seen carries the same aura as Messi. He said that presence will be missing from now on and that the team will have to find new ways forward. He called coaching Messi an incredible experience.
Why the Monumental mattered
The venue suited the occasion. Messi scored more international goals there than anywhere else, 19 in all. It was also where Argentina celebrated its first World Cup title since 1986 after returning from Qatar.
Messi’s international career in numbers
- Appearances and goals. Argentina’s record holder in both, with 208 games and 126 goals. Only Cristiano Ronaldo has more in men’s international football, with 146 goals in 234 games.
- World Cups. He played in a record-tying six tournaments and scored 21 World Cup goals. In 2026 alone he scored eight goals and made four assists, even though Spain won the final 1-0 in New Jersey.
- Trophies. Copa América titles in 2021 and 2024, and the 2022 World Cup.
- Retirement. He briefly stepped away in 2016 before the most successful period of his national-team career.
What comes next for Messi
Messi’s last tango ends but is not finished with football. He keeps playing for Inter Miami, where he recently won the Campeones Cup, his fourth trophy with the club. His strong World Cup also put him back in the Ballon d’Or conversation, competing with Spain’s Lamine Yamal and France’s Kylian Mbappé for an award he has already won eight times, a record.
Frequently asked questions
Who did Argentina play in Messi’s last match?
Argentina beat Benin 3-0 in an international friendly at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires on October 6, 2026.
Did Messi score in his final game for Argentina?
Yes. He scored a penalty in the 71st minute for his 126th international goal, and he also set up the other two goals.
Will Messi keep playing football?
Yes. He has retired from the national team only and continues at Inter Miami.
How many goals did Messi score at the Monumental?
He scored 19 international goals there, the most at any stadium in his career.