The 37-year-old has been a mainstay in the Belgian national side since 2010 - once part of the golden generation during the 2010s, he enters this World Cup as the oldest member of the Red Devils, a veteran with experience around the world.
The enthusiasm for the World Cup has not waned since his first in 2014, and the defensive midfielder hopes to treat it the same as he did in Brazil 12 years ago.
Speaking to Daniel Sobis ahead of the tournament, he told Flashscore: “I will take this one like it’s the first one, because it's going to be the last one.
“I will do everything to really enjoy every moment. I'm not talking about only the games, but also the training, to be with my teammates in the hotel for a minimum of four weeks.”
With 138 caps to his name already, Witsel has seen everything with Belgium. From falling just short in 2018, when they finished third, to a harrowing group stage exit four years ago, it’s been a rollercoaster for a player and side that never met their high potential.
Under the management of Rudi Garcia for this tournament, this is the last chance for the likes of Witsel, Thomas Meunier, Thibaut Courtois, Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku to taste glory with Belgium.
Young players, such as Jeremy Doku and Charles De Ketelaere, will provide dynamism for this experienced side, and Witsel believes he has more to give at this year’s World Cup.
He added: “I think it's important to have balance, and a really good mix between the new, the new generation and, I would say, the old one.
“I think it's really important to have a really good mood, and that's why now there is me, but there is Lukaku, Kevin De Bruyne, and Courtois also now started to be a little bit older.
“I'm not the only one, but we are there to make life easier for the younger players, and I think for the World Cup, it's always important to have some extra experience.”
Those previous World Cups and European Championships have seen Belgium go close to reaching a final.
In 2018, they were beaten by eventual champions, France, in the semis 1-0, whilst other moments have passed them by, most notably a defeat to Wales in 2016 at the EUROs, when they looked well set to win it all.
Witsel played in both of those heartbreaking encounters, and heading into this tournament, he still feels some regret from 2018.
Reminiscing on the previous decade, the Girona player said, “I think with the generation we had, we did amazing things.
“In 2018, we finished in third place. For us, it was really amazing at that time. Nobody expected Belgium to be there, but we can have a kind of feeling, maybe we could do a different way or a little bit better.
“When we arrived in the semi-final, anything could happen. Today, maybe it's different. We have to be honest with ourselves. In my opinion, there are countries stronger than us, like France, for example.
“I mean, they are a really, really strong team. Then you have Spain, also Argentina, so we are in a different world today.
“All the time in the World Cup, you have surprises, a team who go really far, like last time, for example, in Qatar with Morocco, for example.”
If Belgium are to spring a surprise in the Americas, their old guard will need to perform. Much of that pressure will rest on recently fit Lukaku and De Bruyne, whilst Courtois will be essential between the sticks.
The sun may be setting on Belgium’s ‘Golden Generation’, but Witsel and company will hope they have one more story to tell on July 19th.