Berlin (dpa)
Lionel Messi is hopeful he will be playing at the 2026 World Cup and help Argentina defend their title.
However, he said he will have to see how his body feels next year before choosing whether to play at the tournament in the United States, Mexico and Canada.
"It's something extraordinary to be able to be in a World Cup, and I would love to," Messi told NBC in an interview published on Monday evening, but admitting that his age - he will be 39 next June - is a factor.
"I would like to be there, to be well and be an important part of helping my national team, if I am there," he said.
"And I'm going to assess that on a day-to-day basis when I start preseason next year with Inter (Miami) and see if I can really be 100%, if I can be useful to the group, to the national team, and then make a decision."
Messi has been playing professionally since 2004 and enjoyed a decorated individual and club career. But it took him a while to achieve international success.
That finally came at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, when Argentina defeated France 4-2 on penalties to win their first title since 1986.
"It was the dream of my life," Messi said.
"It was also true that it was the only thing missing at a professional level because I had been lucky enough to have achieved everything at an individual level, at a team level with Barcelona, and I think that's every player's dream."