Argentina President Mauricio Macri is positive Lionel Messi will return to play for the national team.
Messi announced his international retirement following Argentina's defeat to Chile in the Copa America final.
The superstar's decision sent shockwaves around Argentina, with fans gathering in rallies in hopes of convincing Messi to reconsider.
Macri, who spoke with Messi on the phone last month, told CNBC at a financial conference in Idaho on Thursday that "I'm sure he's going to come back."
At a forum at the Konrad Adenauer Foundation in Berlin this week, Macri said he hoped Messi would rejoin the squad before the 2018 World Cup.
"We hope that Messi will be in Russia so that we can gain that revenge in the final," he said.
Argentina newspaper La Nacion, citing multiple people close to Messi, reported on Thursday that Messi had already decided to return before 2018.