Lionel Messi’s retirement from international football has left Argentina with a question that feels almost impossible to answer: what happens to the No.10 shirt now? For many supporters, the obvious answer is to retire it forever. Messi wore it for two decades, became Argentina’s most-capped player and all-time leading scorer, and turned the shirt into one of the most recognisable symbols in world football. But Argentina has tried to do this before, when Diego Maradona was the player being honoured, and FIFA stopped it. More than two decades later, the same regulation stands in the way of giving Messi the ultimate tribute.
Argentina wanted to retire Maradona’s No.10 too
The idea of retiring Argentina’s No.10 is not new, and its strongest precedent comes from the country’s other footballing icon.On 25 September 2001, the Argentine Football Association voted unanimously, on the initiative of then-president Julio Grondona, to retire the No.10 shirt in honour of Maradona.
A pedestrian carries a bucket past graffiti depicting late soccer legend Diego Maradona in Buenos Aires, Argentina, Monday, April 13, 2026. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
The plan was to put the decision into effect before the 2002 World Cup, and at the time it appeared to be settled. Argentine newspaper Olé even ran a front-page headline declaring: “It is God’s will.”There was, however, one problem: FIFA had its own rules governing squad numbers at its tournaments.FIFA rejected Argentina’s request, meaning the No.10 could not simply disappear from the World Cup squad. Ariel “El Burrito” Ortega ultimately wore the shirt for Argentina at the 2002 tournament, becoming the player who wore the famous number most prominently between the Maradona and Messi eras.The significance of that episode has returned now that Messi has stepped away from the national team.This time, it is not Maradona’s name attached to the request. It is Messi’s.
Why FIFA will not let Argentina retire the shirt
The obstacle is not a lack of willingness from Argentina. It is the numbering system FIFA applies to its official tournaments.According to Marca, FIFA regulations require tournament squad lists for competitions such as the World Cup and Copa America to use consecutive numbers from 1 to 26. Every player selected for the 26-man squad must therefore have a number, with none omitted.That makes retiring the No.10 impossible in an official tournament.Argentina could want to leave the number untouched, supporters could overwhelmingly back the idea and the Argentine Football Association could decide that nobody should wear it again, but the regulations would still require the No.10 to be assigned to somebody when the team enters a tournament governed by FIFA’s squad-number rules.
Argentinian super fan Miloslav Urbanec shows his statue of Diego Maradona on a day of the World Cup semifinal match between Argentina and England, in the village of Bukovka, Czech Republic, Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
In other words, Argentina cannot simply submit a 26-man squad numbered 1 through 9 and 11 through 27, or leave the No.10 blank as a permanent tribute to Messi. The numbering requirement creates a direct conflict with the idea of permanently retiring the shirt.That is exactly what happened with Maradona.The regulation therefore means Messi’s No.10 can be treated differently in friendly matches, where Argentina could choose not to use the number, but the situation changes as soon as the national team enters an official tournament.Must read: Argentina ready to hand Messi’s iconic No.10 shirt to 21-year-old star if Scaloni stays
Messi’s No.10 has become impossible to separate from his legacy
The desire to retire the shirt is understandable because Messi did far more than simply inherit Maradona’s number.He wore No.10 for Argentina for roughly two decades and leaves the national team as its all-time leading scorer and most-capped player. His international career also transformed the meaning of the shirt for another generation of Argentine supporters, just as Maradona had done before him.That is why the debate is not really about who deserves to wear the number next. It is about whether anybody should wear it at all.The Argentine Football Association has previously expressed a clear desire to retire the shirt once Messi ended his international career.In 2024, AFA president Claudio Tapia told Sport: “The national team’s number 10 shirt will be retired when Messi ends his international career.”Tapia’s comments made the association’s intention clear, but the practical problem was always going to be FIFA’s tournament regulations.The situation leaves Argentina with an unusual compromise. The No.10 could effectively be reserved as Messi’s number whenever the team plays certain friendlies, allowing the association and supporters to honour him without giving the shirt to another player.But when the next World Cup or Copa America arrives, the number cannot simply be erased from Argentina’s squad list.Someone will have to wear it.Must read: Argentina ready to hand Messi’s iconic No.10 shirt to 21-year-old star if Scaloni stays
The next No.10 will inherit a shirt unlike any other
That leaves Argentina facing another difficult question: if the No.10 cannot be retired, who takes it?Messi’s successor will inevitably inherit a shirt carrying the weight of both him and Maradona. It is one thing to wear the No.10 for Argentina; it is another to wear the number that has belonged to two of the country’s greatest footballers.Several names could enter the conversation, including Alexis Mac Allister, Enzo Fernández, Thiago Almada and Nico Paz.According to ESPN Argentina insider Federico Bueno, Argentina have an internal plan for Paz to take the No.10 if Lionel Scaloni renews his contract as head coach, with negotiations expected to take place in the coming months.For now, though, the immediate reality is simpler: Messi’s No.10 cannot be permanently removed from Argentina’s official tournament squad.Maradona’s Argentina tried it in 2001 and FIFA said no. More than 20 years later, the same rule means Messi’s shirt faces the same fate.
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