Argentina to wear commemorative kit as Lionel Messi makes final international appearance
Lionel Messi will bring his international career to an end by captaining Argentina against Benin in a friendly at the Estadio Más Monumental in Buenos Aires on Tuesday, October 6, 2026, and the national team will wear a specially designed commemorative jersey for the occasion.
The match will be Messi’s 208th and final cap for Argentina. The Inter Miami forward came into the fixture after an influential FIFA World Cup 2026 campaign that helped Argentina reach the final, and he has scored 125 goals for his country to date. Benin enter the game ranked 89th in the FIFA rankings and are described as relatively inexperienced against teams from outside Africa, making them heavy underdogs.
Adidas produced the commemorative kit specifically for Messi’s farewell appearance, with design elements intended to reference his journey with the national side. The base remains Argentina’s traditional sky-blue-and-white, but the shirt is accented with gold detailing intended to differentiate it from the regular match strip.
Gold is applied to the back of the jersey around the player’s name and number and also appears on the Argentina crest at the front. Messi’s name and the No. 10 are rendered in gold, and the No. 10 incorporates a motif resembling goat horns that connects to the ‘GOAT’ acronym — greatest of all time — associated with Messi.
The front of the shirt replaces the Adidas performance logo with Messi’s personal signature logo. The Sun of May motif from the Argentine flag has been woven across both the front and back of the kit.
The apparel rollout included the announcement text: "thank you, Argentina. a jersey to celebrate everything we've lived through together. 🇦🇷gracias, Argentina. una camiseta para celebrar todo lo que vivimos juntos. 🇦🇷👉 https://t.co/xPnKJzAQlK pic.twitter.com/1JHK9rwi5Q"
For viewers in India the match will kick off at 4:30 AM IST on October 7, and fans in India can watch the game live online on Zee5; there is no live TV telecast scheduled in India. For further updates the source advises following Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and using the Khel Now Android or iOS apps and its WhatsApp and Telegram communities.