The question is on everyone's lips. At 38, how long will Lionel Messi still feast on us? Will he play the 2026 World Cup? And after? Each match, each interview is scrutinized, looking for the slightest sign. While his contract with Inter Miami is coming to an end of the year, rumors are going well. But whoever knows him best, his friend and lifelong confidant, Sergio Agüero, spoke. And he gave a clue that changes the whole perspective.
“Messi has gained the right to decide”
Agüero's response is disarmingly simplicity. The index is not a date or a destination. It is a status. “Leo has won the right to decide where he wants to play and for how long”, said the former Manchester City striker. This is the real clue: the decision belongs only to Messi himself. It is no longer dictated by the imperatives of a club, the requirements of a transfer window or the media pressure. The king is the only master of his calendar.
This philosophy, Messi already applies it. His recent decision to extend his contract at Inter Miami is a brilliant proof. He preferred the stability and comfort of a project built around him on a romantic but risky return to Barça. A personal choice, that of a man who has nothing to prove to anyone and who favors his balance and that of his family.
Messi: the only one who knows the date of his retirement is himself (and Agüero understood this)
The 2026 World Cup in sight
This right to decide also applies, and above all, to the selection. Messi will only play the 2026 World Cup if he wants to, if he feels able to bring something. The arrival of his “Bodyguard” In selection, Rodrigo de Paul, in Miami is no coincidence. It is a question of creating an environment where the pleasure of playing remains intact. Because it is now the only engine in number 10.
So when will it stop? No one knows, and that is perhaps the beauty of the situation. The Agüero index is not information, it is a philosophy. Messi will play as long as he has fun. The day the flame will go out, it will go, without notice. The only thing to do for the rest of the world? To wait for. And enjoy, as long as there is still time.
