Lionel Messi says he won't be competing in the Olympics after Copa America

New Delhi: Legendary striker and captain of Argentina at the FIFA World Cup, Lionel Messi, announced that he would not be competing in the 2024 Olympics in Paris because he feels it will be "too much" for him at his age.

The 2024 Paris Olympics will begin on July 26 and go through August 11. Following the conclusion of the Copa America football tournament, which takes place from June 20 to July 14, the competition will begin. Messi has officially ruled out competing in the Olympics, despite Argentina's U23 coach Javier Mascherano's professed hope to bring the renowned football player on board. This information is reported by Olympics.com.

Messi considered a number of issues before deciding to represent his country at the Olympics, including the need to distance himself from his club, Inter Miami.

"To be honest, we both understood the situation," Messi told ESPN, via Olympics.com. "I spoke with Mascherano."

"I have to make some tough decisions, and competing in two tournaments in a row would be too much. It has been an immense pleasure for me to compete at the Olympics and share the victory with Masche. From a football perspective, it was an amazing experience, he continued.

Both players competed for Argentina at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, where they won the gold medal after defeating Nigeria 1-0 in the championship match.

Although he was sad not to receive

"To be lucky enough to experience all of that is amazing. It was wonderful, and I hope the guys who get to go appreciate it as much as I did. "The Olympics are unique and unlike anything else," he said in closing.

In response to Kylian Mbappe, his former colleague at Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), who stated that winning the Euros is far harder than winning the FIFA World Cup, Messi stated that while the competition is significant, it leaves out a number of world-champion teams, such as Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay, and others.

"The World Cup is a big event, but it doesn't include three-time world champion Argentina, five-time world champion Brazil, or two-time world champion Uruguay. You do realize that a lot of world winners have not said that the Euros are the hardest? The greatest teams and past world champions typically compete in the World Cup. Everyone aspires to be a world champion for this reason, Messi continued.
Beginning on June 20, Argentina will play Canada in the Copa America to begin their championship defense.