Lionel Messi is preparing to make his final appearance for Argentina when the country’s most-capped player and record goalscorer faces Benin at the Monumental in Buenos Aires on Tuesday.
The match will mark Messi’s 208th appearance for the national team and is expected to bring an emotional end to an international career that has established him as one of the greatest players in Argentina’s history.
Messi announced his retirement from international football on August 31, six weeks after Argentina’s World Cup final defeat by Spain, saying he had nothing more to give.
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni has continued to insist that the door remains open should Messi change his mind. However, the current expectation is that the 39-year-old’s international chapter is coming to an end.
His playing career, however, is not over.
Messi remains under contract with Inter Miami until the end of the 2028 season. His agreement is reviewed annually, and those close to the Argentine do not expect him to walk away before he feels he has to.
If Messi remains physically and mentally prepared to continue, another extension could therefore be possible.
Beyond his playing career, though, the shape of Messi’s future is already beginning to emerge.
The Argentine is expected to remain deeply involved in football, with ownership appearing to be one of the areas that interests him most. When recently asked whether he would prefer to become a coach or an owner, Messi chose ownership.
The former Barcelona superstar has previously expressed interest in roles such as sporting director or adviser, allowing him to remain close to football without dealing with the constant pressure and demands of coaching.
Ownership would offer Messi the opportunity to influence a club’s direction from a different position, although he is unlikely to be a passive figure.
The groundwork for that future is already being laid in Spain.
Messi bought UE Cornellà, a club based near Barcelona competing in the fifth tier, in April. The club is viewed as part of a wider structure focused on developing young players.
CD Eldense, meanwhile, announced on October 1 that Messi had become its new owner, subject to authorisation from Spain’s sports council, the CSD.
Eldense, who compete in Spain’s second division, are expected to become the leading club within Messi’s football operation. Their immediate objective is more modest, with the priority this season being to avoid relegation.
Former Villarreal manager Javi Calleja was appointed as part of the new era, while Messi is expected to operate through trusted people who can serve as a link between him and the clubs until he is able to dedicate more time to the projects.
Despite his distance from Spain, Messi is already closely following Eldense’s progress. After the club defeated Real Oviedo 4-1, his first message as owner was an Instagram post saying: “Aupa Deportivo.”
His arrival has also already generated commercial interest. Around a dozen sponsors reportedly approached Eldense within days, including companies that had previously spoken with the club’s former owners without completing agreements and others that already have existing relationships with Messi.
Messi’s football ownership ambitions extend beyond Spain.
In Uruguay, he and former Barcelona teammate Luis Suarez founded Deportivo LSM in May 2025. The club secured promotion to Uruguay’s third tier during its first season.
There had previously been discussions about creating a larger network of clubs, but the financial investment required to move clubs through the divisions has cooled that idea. For now, Messi’s focus is understood to be on seeing whether Eldense can establish itself in La Liga.
There is also a future connection with Inter Miami. As part of his contract with the MLS club, Messi is expected to receive shares in the franchise when he retires, although there is currently no plan for him to establish a separate franchise of his own.
A return to his boyhood club Newell’s Old Boys in Rosario remains an idea that could naturally appeal to Messi, while possible returns to Barcelona or a move to Napoli have also been imaginable given his personal connection to both clubs and their histories.
However, those close to the player do not currently expect any of those moves to happen.
For now, Messi’s future appears increasingly centred around Europe and Miami, with his family home in Castelldefels, near Barcelona and the Mediterranean coast, providing a base for the next stage of his extraordinary football journey.
As Argentina prepares to say goodbye to its greatest modern star, Messi is therefore not simply approaching the end of his playing career. He is beginning to build a future in football where the decisions, clubs and projects increasingly belong to him.
