Beckham, a Gift for His Wife, and a Sponsor's Drone Blunder: Everything Weird and Wonderful About Messi's Farewell
Argentina beat Benin 3-0 on October 6, 2026, at El Monumental, in Lionel Messi's 208th and final appearance for the national team. The scoreline barely mattered. What actually went viral that night was everything around it — a guest list full of old teammates, one of the stranger gifts in recent football memory, and an advertising decision so badly timed it turned a tribute into a scandal. Here's the full rundown.
Beckham, Suárez, and a Guest List Full of Old Teammates
David Beckham, already a familiar face at major tournaments, traveled to Buenos Aires for the occasion. Luis Suárez — Messi's former Barcelona teammate and one of his closest friends in the sport — was reportedly in tears in the stands watching the farewell unfold.
Several veterans of Argentina's 2022 World Cup-winning squad who have since retired from the national team, among them Ángel Di María, were also in the stadium with their families for the occasion. In the VIP box, Messi's wife Antonela Roccuzzo, their three sons, and his mother Celia Cuccittini watched the night play out.
Benin's Strange, Touching Gift — Addressed to His Wife, Not Him
Benin's players didn't just hand Messi a shirt. Their second captain, Cecé Dalmeida, presented a letter signed by the entire Benin squad, a flower, and a small statue — but nobody actually handed the statue to Messi. It went straight to Antonela instead.
The statue mattered: it was a scaled-down replica of the "Amazon Monument" in Cotonou, Benin's economic capital, honoring the Dahomey Amazons — known locally as the Agojie — the only documented all-female army in history, who defended the ancient Kingdom of Dahomey through the 19th century. The gesture, as Benin's delegation explained it, was to give Antonela a historic protector so that she could keep "protecting the king."
The Referee's Parting Gift: His Own Cards
After the final whistle, referee Juan Vejar walked over to Messi, offered a handshake and a wink, and handed over his own yellow and red cards — a small, odd memento for an eight-time Ballon d'Or winner who, for once, wasn't the one being booked.
The Drone Show That Backfired (Twice)
The night's biggest controversy came after the final whistle. A tribute drone light show — around 500 drones, a seven-minute production reportedly costing about $100,000 — had been planned to close out the ceremony. Except it opened not with an image of Messi, but with the logo and name of Sancor Seguros, an insurance company that sponsors the Argentine Football Association (AFA), hanging in the sky over El Monumental for roughly 10 seconds before any tribute content appeared.
Messi looked visibly confused. The crowd of 85,018 booed in protest. Spanish newspaper AS summed up the reaction bluntly, writing that the AFA "could not give up its greed for profit" even during a personal tribute to its greatest player. The backlash was severe enough that both Sancor Seguros and the AFA disabled comments on their social media accounts in the hours that followed.
Once the show moved past the ad, the drones went on to form the AFA crest, the World Cup trophy, the words "Thank you, Leo!", and — fittingly — a giant No. 10 jersey with Messi's name in the sky. There was a second, smaller blunder buried in there too: one of the silhouette images showed Messi striking the ball with his right foot, when the real Messi is one of the most famous left-footed players the sport has ever produced.
The Match Itself, in Case You Forgot There Was One
Underneath all the noise, there was still a football match — and a good one. Argentina won 3-0, with Messi converting a 71st-minute penalty and adding two assists for his 208th and final cap. Play was stopped in the 10th minute for a minute-long standing ovation as the stadium sang "Olé, olé, olé" on repeat.
There was a quieter irony to the fixture too: Benin wasn't just a ceremonial opponent. The match doubled as one of the official friendlies Argentina used to work down FIFA's suspensions on Leandro Paredes and Nahuel Molina after the World Cup Final brawl — meaning Messi's farewell technically shared a billing with a disciplinary paperwork exercise.
6 Things to Know
1. Argentina beat Benin 3-0 on October 6, 2026, at El Monumental — Messi's 208th and final appearance for the national team, with a penalty and two assists.
2. David Beckham and Luis Suárez were among the familiar faces in the stands; several of Argentina's 2022 World Cup winners attended with their families.
3. Benin's players gifted Messi's wife, Antonela Roccuzzo, a replica statue honoring the Dahomey Amazons, a historic all-female army, with the message that she should keep "protecting the king."
4. Referee Juan Vejar handed Messi his own yellow and red cards as a parting gift after the final whistle.
5. A post-match tribute drone show opened with the logo of AFA sponsor Sancor Seguros instead of an image of Messi, drawing boos from fans and a wave of online backlash.
6. The Benin friendly also counted as one of the matches Argentina used to serve FIFA suspensions handed to Leandro Paredes and Nahuel Molina after the World Cup Final brawl.