Messi Says Goodbye to Argentina as Football’s Golden Era Ends — But the Businessman Is Just Getting Started

Lionel Messi is about to play his final match for Argentina, bringing an extraordinary international chapter to an emotional close while creating the rather amusing impression that football’s most famous No. 10 is simply changing departments. At 39, Messi will make his farewell appearance against Benin at Buenos Aires’ Estadio Monumental on October 6, ending more than two decades in the Albiceleste shirt. FIFA confirmed the farewell fixture after Messi announced his international retirement following Argentina’s 2026 World Cup final defeat by Spain.

But while supporters prepare for tears, tributes and one final roar of “Messi, Messi,” the Argentine superstar appears to have another plan: make sure retirement from international football does not mean retirement from football altogether. With club football, investments and ownership projects increasingly occupying his attention, Messi’s golden era on the pitch may be ending just as his era as a businessman and football owner begins to accelerate.

Messi’s Argentina Goodbye Could Be the Start of Something Even Bigger

The farewell against Benin will close a remarkable international story that once looked as though it might never receive the ending Argentina wanted. Messi leaves the national team as its record appearance-maker and leading scorer, with 125 goals in 207 matches, while his collection of major honours includes the 2022 World Cup and Copa América triumphs in 2021 and 2024.

There is a delicious piece of football irony in the farewell. Messi spent years being criticised for not delivering Argentina the ultimate prize before eventually winning the 2022 World Cup and becoming one of the country’s most celebrated sporting figures. He then helped Argentina reach the 2026 World Cup final before Spain ended that campaign with a 1-0 victory. Now, against Benin, the curtain finally comes down. Argentina gets its farewell; Messi gets another full stadium; and football gets approximately 85,000 people trying not to cry at the same time.

The Golden Era Ends, But Messi Is Not Exactly Walking Away

Yet the end of Messi’s international career may be less of a retirement story and more of a career rebrand. Messi remains under contract with Inter Miami through the end of the 2028 MLS season, meaning the Argentina farewell is not the end of his playing career. Meanwhile, his business portfolio has expanded well beyond endorsements, with interests spanning property, hotels, entertainment, technology and football.

The most entertaining development for football-watchers is his growing interest in actually owning clubs. Messi completed a move to become majority owner of Spanish second-tier club Eldense earlier this month, following his acquisition of fifth-tier UE Cornellà. Reuters reported that the Eldense transaction makes Messi the club’s majority owner, pending regulatory approval. So, apparently, after spending two decades asking defenders difficult questions, Messi has decided that owning the clubs might be easier.

And there is potentially another boardroom waiting for him in Miami. Inter Miami’s business leadership has said the club wants Messi to remain connected to the franchise after his playing career, with the possibility of him becoming part of the ownership group once he is no longer an active MLS player. His existing contract runs through 2028, while the club’s current official ownership is led by Jorge Mas, José Mas and David Beckham.

For Argentina, therefore, this is the end of a golden era; for Messi, it may simply be the beginning of another. The boy who once travelled to Barcelona to chase a football dream has become a World Cup champion, an international icon and increasingly a businessman with football clubs among his assets. As he walks onto the Monumental pitch for the final time in an Argentina shirt, supporters will understandably focus on the player they are losing — while the business world may already be looking at the owner they are gaining. OGM News FC will keep watching closely, because if Messi’s playing career is entering its final chapter, his football empire may only be getting started.