Lionel Messi has opened up about one of the darkest chapters of his international career—his shock retirement from Argentina following the 2016 Copa América final loss to Chile on penalties. The football icon recently described that decision as one of the most emotionally draining moments of his life.
After missing his spot-kick in the final, Messi announced his international retirement in the mixed zone, leaving fans stunned. The decision saw him step away from the national team for several months between June and August 2016.
“𝑰 𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒑𝒍𝒚 𝒓𝒆𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒆𝒄𝒊𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏. 𝑾𝒂𝒕𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑨𝒓𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒂 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒎𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒚 𝒑𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒇𝒖𝒍,” 𝑴𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊 𝒂𝒅𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒏 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒆𝒘 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝑨𝒓𝒈𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒆 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎 𝑳𝒖𝒛.
Return, Redemption, and a Powerful Lesson Messi
Messi later explained that the emotional weight of repeated final defeats had pushed him to a breaking point, but time and reflection helped him regain clarity. Conversations with then-coach Edgardo Bauza played a key role in his return.
“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒊𝒏 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒅𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆, 𝒃𝒖𝒕 𝒍𝒂𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒅 𝒔𝒑𝒂𝒄𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝒄𝒂𝒍𝒎𝒍𝒚,” 𝑴𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊 𝒔𝒂𝒊𝒅.
His comeback proved decisive. Lionel returned to international duty in September 2016 and famously scored the only goal in a crucial 2018 World Cup qualifier against Uruguay, reigniting Argentina’s campaign.
Since reversing his retirement, Lionel has enjoyed unprecedented success with Argentina, winning the Copa América, Finalissima, and the FIFA World Cup—achievements that reshaped his legacy.
Reflecting on the experience, Messi shared a message of resilience:
“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒊𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒔𝒕 𝒍𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒐𝒏 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒖𝒑. 𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒂𝒍𝒍, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒖𝒑 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒌𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒈𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒈. 𝑨𝒕 𝒍𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒏, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒈𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒎.”
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