In Buenos Aires, where Lionel Messi’s Argentina story has returned again and again to the Monumental, River Plate marked his final appearance for the national team at the stadium with an institutional tribute. The Núñez club made the Argentina captain an honorary member before the friendly against Benin, handing him a River shirt bearing his name and the No. 10.
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River presented Messi with an official membership card confirming his status as Socio Honorario, as well as a commemorative plaque. The ceremony took place at the Monumental ahead of Argentina’s match with Benin, described as the forward’s farewell with the national side.
For River, the gesture recognised a player whose international career has included many appearances at the stadium on the northern edge of the capital. The Monumental has staged major Argentina occasions throughout Messi’s years with the Albiceleste, and the club used the occasion to salute his contribution in those fixtures.
River’s message accompanying the presentation read: “Thank you for so much football.”
Messi’s captaincy period brought Argentina a sequence of defining international honours: the 2021 Copa América, the 2022 Finalissima, the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and the 2024 Copa América under Lionel Scaloni.
A different outcome from 26 years ago
The honour also carried an echo from Messi’s earliest years. River had considered signing him 26 years ago, when he was still a teenager beginning to attract attention, but the move did not proceed because of the expense of medical treatment.
That old decision did not prevent a final ceremonial meeting between Messi and the club at Argentina’s most familiar ground: River’s red-and-white shirt, his customary No. 10, and honorary membership at the Monumental.
