Football great Lionel Messi has announced he will retire from the Argentinian team.
The announcement comes less than a month after the death of his father Jorge.
Following his father’s death on August 7, Messi expressed doubts about the future of his international career.
In a post on Instagram released on Monday, Messi said he had penned a resignation statement two days after this year’s World Cup final, which Argentina lost to Spain, but made his final decision only after the passing of his father.
Referring to lines from the original note, a picture of which Messi also posted, he said stepping down was a “decision that hurt” but that the “time had come”.
“There isn’t much time left, and chapters are coming to an end, and this is one that hurts me a lot.Â
“I love, have loved, and will always love being part of the national team. I gave everything I had; I have nothing left to give.Â
“And besides, there are some very talented young players coming through who deserve their chance.”
Messi was the captain of Argentina’s men’s national football side, leading them to victory in the World Cup in Qatar in 2022.Â
He is considered by many to be the best footballer of his era.
He first entered competitive football playing for Barcelona in 2004, made his debut for the Argentinian side a year later and became the national team’s captain in 2011.Â
The record eight-times Ballon d’Or winner is his country’s record appearance-maker and scorer with 125 goals in 207 games, having transformed a complicated relationship with the national team into a story of redemption and triumph.
Among his achievements is winning a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympic Games, then aged 21.
The former Barcelona and Paris St Germain forward who now plays for Inter Miami added another Copa America title in 2024 and arrived at his sixth World Cup hoping to complete an extraordinary final chapter.
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