Lionel Messi’s Argentina will lose the No. 1 spot in the FIFA rankings after holding it for over two years. Argentina closed their Conmebol World Cup Qualifying campaign with a 1-0 loss to Ecuador, a match played without Lionel Messi.

As the CONMEBOL 2026 World Cup qualifiers have come to an end, Lionel Messi has achieved a historic feat with Argentina for the first time in 24 years.

We've got a ton of international action in the Americas this evening with the conclusion of the CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifiers, plus friendlies for the big-boys in North America. Check back throughout

Argentina manager Lionel Scaloni, missing the services of Lionel Messi, suffered a shock 1-0 away defeat to Ecuador in the FIFA World Cup 2026 CONMEBOL Qualifiers

After wrapping up his final match of the 2026 Conmebol World Cup Qualifiers in Argentina, Lionel Messi has netted two goals for the national team in 2025. This performance inevitably draws comparisons to Cristiano Ronaldo's goal tally in the same span.

Last night, Ecuador shocked South America when they put in a resilient performance to win 1-0 against Argentina in the CONMEBOL World Cup qualifiers, to see themselves finish 2nd in the group table.