Argentina captain Lionel Messi has spoken publicly for the first time since his country’s painful defeat to Spain in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, admitting the loss would leave a lasting scar while expressing immense pride in his teammates’ remarkable journey.
The Inter Miami star remained silent in the immediate aftermath of Sunday’s final, where Argentina surrendered their world title following a 1-0 extra-time defeat to Spain at the MetLife Stadium in New York.
Ferran Torres’ extra-time strike handed Spain their second FIFA World Cup crown, ending Argentina’s dream of defending the title they won in Qatar four years earlier.
In an emotional message shared on his Instagram page on Monday, Messi described the defeat as one of the most difficult moments of his career but insisted the memories created throughout the tournament would remain with him forever.
“The pain is so great, and it’s going to be hard for me to close this wound. But I’ll keep all the good stuff too… With the matches we turned leaving everything and that will remain forever in the memory, with the support of an entire country that together with the work and effort of this group led us to be, once again, among the best in the world,” Messi wrote.
The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner praised his teammates for guiding Argentina to a second consecutive World Cup final, saying the achievement should not be overshadowed by the disappointment of missing out on the trophy.
“Today it’s hard to evaluate what we did, but this group reached two consecutive World Cup finals,” he added.
Messi also expressed heartfelt gratitude to millions of Argentines who stood behind the team throughout the competition.
“Thank you very much from the heart for every greeting and for every message. Once again we managed to unite as a country and be all together, sharing the immense pride of being Argentinian,” he said.
In a gesture of sportsmanship, the 39-year-old congratulated Spain on their triumph, acknowledging the new world champions after their memorable victory.
“I also want to congratulate Spain on the championship,” Messi concluded.
Insightlinks Sports Arena recalled that Argentina arrived at the tournament as defending champions after winning the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Despite falling short against Spain in the final, Lionel Scaloni’s men enjoyed another impressive campaign by reaching back-to-back World Cup finals before surrendering their crown.
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