Messi currently plays for Club Internacional de Fútbol Miami, commonly referred to as Inter Miami, an American professional football club.
Messi has stated that the 2026 tournament will almost certainly be his final World Cup, marking the end of his international career with the Argentinian national team.
“As I’ve said before, I don’t think I’ll play another World Cup. At my age, it’s only logical to think I might not,” the Argentine star said after his team’s 3-0 win over Venezuela in September 2025.
In December 2025, he even admitted he might not play in 2026, despite his strong desire to participate.
Messi has, however, left the door ajar for possible friendlies afterward as a farewell, but the overwhelming expectation shared by media, teammates, and the Argentine federation is that he will retire from international football once the World Cup concludes.
For Inter Miami, he is not retiring yet — he signed a contract extension that runs through the 2028 season.
Messi and Ronaldo — a duo without match
Most football pundits agree that no one has come close to matching the exceptional levels reached by these two players.
That includes young superstars, like Norway’s Erling Haaland and France’s Kylian Mbappe, and even older superstars who shared the same stage with Ronaldo and Messi, including Brazil’s Neymar, Uruguay’s Luis Suarez, France’s Karim Benzema, Egypt’s Mohamed Salah and Poland’s Robert Lewandowski.
Ronaldo, so far, is football’s all-time leading goal scorer, with over 970 goals, and he even seeks to reach 1,000 milestone before calling it a day.
Broken down to competition level, his numbers are still very hard to achieve.
Ronaldo, often dubbed “Mr Champions League”, scored 450 goals for Real Madrid, 145 for Manchester United, 101 for Juventus, and more than 100 for Al Nassr.
He is currently the UEFA Champions League all-time leading goal scorer with 140 goals. He is also the all-time top scorer for men’s international matches, with 143 goals, followed by Messi with 116, and Iran’s Ali Daei with 108.
Messi, on the other hand, is football’s most decorated player, with a record of 46 titles, followed by his former Barca teammate Dani Alves with 43, and Egypt’s Hossam Ashour with 39.
Messi has scored nearly 800 goals over the course of his professional career.
He scored 672 goals for Barcelona, 35 for PSG, and 67 for Inter Miami, and his tally continues to grow.
It will be a significant challenge for players such as Mbappe and Haaland to match or surpass these figures.
Related
One last dance
During the 2026 FIFA World Cup, fans around the world will be closely watching two legends competing in their final World Cup.
This will mark a record sixth World Cup appearance for both players.
Messi played in 2006, 2010, 2014, and 2018, and won the World Cup in 2022.
Ronaldo played in 2006, 2010, 2014, 2018, and 2022. He has yet to win the World Cup, making this his final opportunity to clinch the long-sought trophy.
There is even a possibility that both stars could face each other on July 11 in Kansas City for a quarter-final match, provided Argentina — avoiding the “defending champions’ curse” — and Portugal win their respective groups and progress.
Despite both superstars playing in every tournament since 2006, Argentina and Portugal have never crossed paths in the World Cup itself.
This could be both their first and final opportunity — and what an absolute treat for fans to watch Messi and Ronaldo clash against each other in one last dance.
