The “Finalissima” between Spain and Lionel Messi’s team, which was originally supposed to take place on March 27 in Doha (Qatar), will not happen due to the lack of agreement between UEFA and the Argentine Football Federation.
The long-awaited match between Spain, winner of Euro 2024, and Argentina, winner of the Copa America, has been cancelled. Initially scheduled to be held on March 27 in Doha, Qatar, the match was postponed indefinitely by the Qatari Football Federation (QFA) due to the war in the Middle East.
Discussions were then held with UEFA and COMMEBOL to move this prestigious match between Lamine Yamal and Lionel Messi to Europe. However, due to the short timeframe, no agreement was reached between all parties. Despite exploring several options, none were deemed acceptable by the Argentine Football Federation.
Argentina rejected the proposed alternative plan to play at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid on March 27 with equal distribution of supporters. Another option was a two-leg match, with the first leg in Madrid and the second leg in Buenos Aires before the 2028 editions of the Euro and Copa America. However, Argentina also rejected this proposal, along with the suggestion to play the Finalissima at a neutral European venue on March 27.
UEFA revealed that Argentina suggested playing the match after the 2026 World Cup, but Spain did not have available dates. Furthermore, the Algerian Football Federation (FAF) mentioned that they could only play on March 31. The 3rd edition of the “Finalissima” was won by Argentina 3-0 against Italy on June 1, 2022, at Wembley.
