Marcos Llorente has announced his retirement from international football after helping Spain win the World Cup this summer. The 31-year-old made 27 appearances for Spain after making his senior debut under Luis Enrique in November 2020 and represented his country at Euro 2020 and two World Cups. The Atlético Madrid man made three appearances during Spain's triumph in 2026, starting against Cape Verde and Uruguay before coming off the bench in their semifinal victory over France.

"After giving it a lot of thought, I have decided to bring my time with the national team to an end," Llorente said in a post on Instagram. "I am aware that I am still young and that, perhaps, if I continued doing things well, I would still have years ahead of me to keep playing in this shirt."

"Regardless of whether I would have gone to the World Cup or not, or whether we would have won it or not, I had already made this decision," he added. "I know that many of you will not understand it and, surely, I would not have understood it either from the outside. But it is a personal decision, one I have thought about very carefully and, above all, one that is very heartfelt."

Llorente had openly discussed his long-term future in football in recent months. "I won't be one of those [players] who retires because they can't continue physically," he said in a Q&A for followers on social media. "Before that, everything that football involves will no longer compensate me ... The only thing that excites me [in football] is winning the Champions League with Atletico." "My life doesn't revolve around football," Llorente added. "It revolves around my health."