Lionel Messi Updates 2026 World Cup Plans with Argentina Ahead of Group Draw

One way or another, Argentina star Lionel Messi is attending the 2026 World Cup.

"I hope I can be there. I've said before that I'd love to be there," he said in an interview with ESPN. "At worst, I'll be there watching it live, but it will be special.

"The World Cup is special for everyone, for any country — especially for us, because we live it in a completely different way."

The stakes of any given World Cup are so high that a coach is taking a risk whenever he selects a player, no matter how great, based largely on reputation. The pressure on Lionel Scaloni is even higher as Argentina is the reigning world champion.

Messi will be 39 when the World Cup kicks off and La Albiceleste boast a lot of attacking talent. Next summer, maybe his performance has started to tail off to a point where he isn't the best option for Scaloni on the merits.

But the eight-time Ballon d'Or winner hasn't had that sort of decline yet. He won the MLS Golden Boot in 2025 with 29 goals and tied for the league lead in assists with 19.

Messi has added another six goals and seven assists in the playoffs as Inter Miami heads into Saturday's MLS Cup final against the Vancouver Whitecaps.

Across 12 World Cup qualifying matches, he also scored eight goals and assisted on three more, so the legendary forward isn't merely padding his stats in a league that's a step below the best competitions in Europe.

As long as he isn't dealing with an injury, it's tough to picture Messi only following the 2026 World Cup as a spectator.