By our reporter 20.7.2026
Argentina’s captain Lionel Messi failed to fulfill his wish of ending his international career with another title as Spain emerged champions of the 2026 FIFA World Cup final on Sunday.
Messi shed tears as Spain lifted the trophy, they truly worked hard to win with their dominant display from start to finish, the Argentine team was left frustrated as they could not win the ball and let Messi do what he knows how best to do; score and create chances. A lenient referee finally hard it with their rough tackles and he flash a red card to Enzo Fernandez for a double yellow.
The game dragged on to extra time and Argentina was hoping that Emilio Martinez will save them in the shootout, like in the 1990 World Cup when West Germany did all the playing and Argentina won on penalty shoot-out. But unfortunately, Ferran Torres came from the bench to deliver the knockout blow, which Spain need all evening after putting Argentina on the ropes.
Messi it seems took the defeat more personal than his teammates… he sat all alone in the centre of the pitch while the victors celebrated wildly with their fans. He slipped off the boots Adidas had made specially for him, a pair called the Last Tango and stared vacantly ahead of him. By the next World Cup in 2023, he would be 43 years old and it remained to be seen if he would still be around on the pitch.
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni summed up Messi’s feelings: “[I feel] sadness but knowing that we left everything out there.
“They [Spain] were better, that’s the truth. But I’ll hold on to an enormous memory of what they’ve done, of what it’s worth to get this far.
On whether Messi will wear the Argentina shirt again Scaloni added: “He is 39 years old, it is unbelievable.
“It was always crystal clear to me that he would play until he chose to stop and that everyone would support him.
“I hope everyone is proud of him, because he is the best football player ever to set foot on a pitch.”
There were conspiracy theories FIFA wanted Argentina to win for Messi’s sake, and indeed throughout the tournament Messi and Argentina either rode on their luck or had a helping hand with match officiating.
Even in the final a goal scored by Nico Williams was cruelly ruled when video replay showed there was no foul in the build. VAR review was not even consulted. But Torres smashed into the net an indisputable goal and most of the world seem to have joined the Spaniards to erupt in jubilation while Messi cried.
Argentina fans felt for their hero, they cried with him.
“I feel empty. Empty because of Messi, because I won’t see him in a World Cup again. This is the last one,” said Camilo Cichero, a 22-year-old architecture student who was comforting his crying friend.
“It’s not how we expected it to go. At least it gives me peace of mind knowing he’s already won everything there was to win.”
Composing himself, his friend Juan Saenz, 22, a law student, said: “This was the last of Messi …it was the very end, and it finished this way.”
“I was born while Messi was playing, and this was the end of that era.”
In Messi’s hometown, Rosario, hundreds gathered to celebrate the player and his team with fireworks and chants.
“We’ve already won a cup. We can’t just break down in tears — we have to celebrate. Messi has already put us at the very top of the world,” Sergio Irrazabal told AFP.
