International Duty: Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi Called Up For Argentina

You’ve won a World Cup for your country, so you’d think there’s nothing left to do, right?

Wrong.

Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi, fresh off leading La Albiceleste to the 2022 World Cup title in Qatar, has been called up for a group of World Cup qualifiers in September.

Let’s dive into it.

Question of Lionel Messi Playing For Argentina Answered

There wasn’t a lot of speculation, but there was the outside chance that Messi would not play for his home country in its upcoming bouts.

We can put that rumor to rest as Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni has called Messi up for upcoming 2026 World Cup qualifying matches.

I mean, it makes perfect sense for Messi to get the call.

He does, after all, lead his country in most caps (175), most goals (103) and most World Cup goals (13).

On top of that, Messi also has the record for the most World Cup appearances (26) and is the only player to ever score in the World Cup group stage, round of 16, quarterfinals, semifinals and final in his career.

He led La Albiceleste to wins in the 2021 CONMEBOL Copa America and 2022 Finalissima before winning the World Cup in Qatar last year.

Under FIFA rules, Inter Miami is obligated to release him for international play, if he chooses to play (and it’s likely he will).

We’ll get more into the ramifications in a bit.