When is Lionel Messi's final Argentina game? Opponent, date, kickoff time, venue

By Ben Sully | 02 Oct 2026 00:18, Last updated: 02 Oct 2026 02:36

Argentina are set to enter a new era after their greatest-ever player, Lionel Messi, announced his retirement from international football.

The 39-year-old announced last month that he had "nothing left to give" following his country's World Cup final defeat to Spain on July 19.

Messi starred in a remarkably successful period for the national team, which included a triumphant 2022 World Cup campaign and Copa America glory in 2021 and 2024.

While he has already played his last competitive international match, Messi will don the iconic blue and white shirt one final time in a farewell fixture that is sure to be full of emotion. 

Here, Sports Mole covers everything you need to know about Messi's 208th and final Argentina appearance.

Argentina started the current international window with a commanding 4-0 victory over Bolivia in an all-South American affair.

Lionel Scaloni's charges will return to action on Saturday when they take on Burkina Faso in Buenos Aires.

Messi will then come into the fold for his final Argentina outing against Benin, his 64th different opponent in international football.

The game offers Messi the chance to score against a 46th different nation before the curtain comes down on his glittering international career. 

Benin's head coach is the vastly experienced Gernot Rohr and the country's captain is former Huddersfield Town striker Steve Mounie.

The game will get underway at 8pm local time on Tuesday, October 6, which will be a 12am start on Wednesday, October 7 for UK viewers.

For those watching in the USA, the game will start at 7pm Eastern Time, 4pm Pacific Time, 6pm Central Time and 5pm Mountain Time. 

In Europe, the game will start at 1am CEST and 2am EEST in the early hours of October 7. 

In other major cities around the world, the contest will take place 8pm in Sao Paulo and 11pm in Accra, Dakar and Abidjan.

Elsewhere, the game will start on October 7 at 1am in Cairo and Johannesburg, at 7am in Shanghai, at 8am in Tokyo and Seoul and at 9am in Sydney and Melbourne

Messi's final international appearance will take place at the iconic Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires.

The venue is home to Argentine giants River Plate and can hold just over 85,000 spectators. 

Messi has represented his country 28 times at the historic stadium, scoring 19 goals and providing 11 assists across 22 wins and six draws.

Get FREE daily news and in-depth previews for games from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football — straight to your inbox.