Argentina captain Lionel Messi reached another major milestone in his legendary career by making his 200th appearance for Argentina during the team's FIFA World Cup 2026 Group J opener against Algeria at Kansas City Stadium. The landmark came as the defending world champions began their title defence, with Messi leading the side as captain.
At 38, Messi became only the third men's footballer to reach 200 international appearances, joining Cristiano Ronaldo, who has 228 caps, and Bader Al-Mutawa, who has made 202 appearances for Kuwait. Since making his senior debut for Argentina in 2005 as an 18-year-old, Messi has scored 117 goals in 200 international matches.
