Argentina to pause every football match in 10th minute for Messi tribute

Argentina's football federation (AFA) will pause every domestic match this weekend for a minute-long tribute to Lionel Messi following his retirement from international football, the governing body confirmed on Wednesday.

Matches across all men's and women's divisions and disciplines will stop in the 10th minute of the first half, with players and fans invited to applaud the 39-year-old's Albiceleste career.

Clubs have been instructed to use stadium screens to replay highlights from Messi's international career, which began with his senior debut in 2005.

Messi finishes as Argentina's all-time leading scorer with 125 goals from 21 years of service, and holds the record for World Cup appearances by an Argentine player, having featured at six tournaments.

He lifted the trophy in 2022, ending the country's 36-year wait for a third World Cup title.

The tribute follows Messi's announcement on Instagram this week that Argentina's 2026 World Cup final defeat to Spain was his last appearance for the national team.

In a handwritten note posted on Monday, Messi explained his decision to step away. "I gave it my all; I have nothing left to give," he wrote, adding that the choice had been painful but necessary.

"It was a decision that hurt - and still hurts deep down - but I understand that the time has come," Messi said.

AFA's statement said matches would pause "in recognition of Lionel Messi's career with the Argentina national team," underlining the scale of the gesture across the domestic game.

Messi's 2026 World Cup campaign ended in final defeat, four years after his triumphant 2022 campaign in Qatar, where Argentina beat France to end a 36-year trophy drought.

The AFA said the weekend tribute would extend to every division and discipline nationwide, marking what it called an unprecedented recognition of an individual player's legacy in Argentine football history.