At 38, Lionel Messi may have just played his final match on the global stage, and it ended in a humbling 4-0 defeat to former club Paris St-Germain. Playing in front of 65,574 fans in Atlanta, Messi’s Inter Miami were dismantled in the Club World Cup last-16 by a PSG side in red-hot form.

But even amid the disappointment, Messi provided flashes of brilliance.

"PSG are champions of everything right now, but people still pay to watch Leo Messi, even at 38," said Inter boss and former team-mate Javier Mascherano.

PSG defender Lucas Beraldo echoed that sentiment: "Leo is a unique person. To share a game with him was magnificent. I watched his magic on TV as a kid—it was special."

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Messi's contract with Inter Miami runs until the end of 2025, and beyond that, the future is unclear. Even Messi himself hasn’t committed to playing at the 2026 World Cup, which will be hosted across the United States, Mexico, and Canada.

Teammates like Luis Suarez and Nicolas Otamendi believe he’ll continue until then. But according to Guillem Balague, Messi’s biographer, "Nobody knows—not even Messi."

Balague writes that Messi and his family are settled in Miami and that contract extension talks are ongoing. "He’s taking it game by game, tournament by tournament. Everyone wants to see him lead Argentina in 2026, but he hasn’t revealed his intentions yet."

After winning the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Messi solidified his claim as football’s greatest. Captaining Argentina to glory was the final accolade missing from his résumé. Yet whether he’ll try to repeat the feat remains to be seen.

Despite the scoreline, Messi still mesmerised in moments. With five minutes left, he stood over a free-kick that had everyone in the stadium holding their breath—but it hit the wall.

"He’s so clever. He walks around the pitch, then suddenly explodes. He’s from a different planet," said ex-Chelsea midfielder John Mikel Obi on DAZN.

Though he didn’t score or assist, Messi completed 31 of his 35 passes and provided several touches of magic. One perfectly weighted lob over the defence found Suarez, whose poor control squandered the opportunity.

"That’s the touch of the tournament," said pundit Don Hutchison. "The weight of the pass—perfection. It deserved a goal."

He also drifted past defenders with ease and had multiple shots on target, including a glancing header reminiscent of his 2009 Champions League final goal for Barcelona.

Mascherano praised his star man: "Leo played a great game within our limitations. In the second half we found him more, but in the first, PSG’s press made it tough."

This was Messi’s first time facing a former club—and ironically, it came against the one where expectations weren’t met. During his time at PSG, Messi scored 32 goals in 75 appearances, but never led them to the Champions League title.

Since his departure, PSG have flourished—winning the Champions League and now eyeing the Club World Cup title as part of a historic treble.

Messi remains the all-time top scorer for Barcelona (672 goals), Argentina (112), and Inter Miami (50). But as he approaches 40, it’s clear his global stage appearances may be winding down.

With the Club World Cup not returning until 2029, when Messi would be 42, this could indeed have been his global swan song. If he stays in MLS, most of his remaining matches will be domestic affairs.

Still, even in a heavy defeat, Messi reminded the world of his genius. And for fans, that alone was worth the ticket.