FIFA have blocked a special tribute Argentina wanted to pay to Lionel Messi. The Argentine Football Association want to retire the number 10 shirt after the 39-year-old forward's retirement, but world football's governing body rules make that impossible.
Messi announced on 31 August that he is retiring from international football after an outstanding career spanning more than two decades. The Inter Miami forward will officially say goodbye to the Argentine public on 6 October during the friendly against Benin at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires.
After that, Argentina want to retire the iconic number 10 shirt for good. Messi won 207 caps and scored 125 goals. The superstar also led his country to the World Cup final for the third time in 2026, where Spain were again too strong and won 1-0.
FIFA's rules, however, are an insurmountable obstacle for Argentina. During international final tournaments, teams must assign squad numbers 1 to 26, which means they cannot permanently retire a number in that range.
Liberia hit the same problem in the past. The country had retired the number 14 shirt as a tribute to George Weah, but during the qualification campaign for the 2026 World Cup, Nicholas Andrews still had to wear it because of FIFA guidelines.
So far, head coach Lionel Scaloni has not announced who will take Messi's number. "We are not obliged to assign it for the upcoming matches, so we will give it to no one until after Leo's farewell match. We just have not yet decided who," said the 48-year-old coach.
According to ESPN Argentina reporter Federico Bueno, though, Argentina have already decided internally who the leading candidate is. "If Scaloni extends his contract as Argentina head coach, then Nico Paz will be the new number 10. That has been decided internally," Bueno said.
At 22, Paz is regarded as one of the most promising attacking midfielders in the world. The former Real Madrid midfielder completed a permanent €60 million move to Como last summer and has an €80 million buy-back clause in his contract. He has so far made eleven appearances for Argentina and scored once.