# Sócrates
**Sócrates** (Sócrates Brasileiro Sampaio de Souza Vieira de Oliveira; 19 February 1954 – 4 December 2011) was a Brazilian footballer who played as an attacking midfielder and captained Brazil at the 1982 [FIFA World Cup](https://www.edgepedia.org/fifa-world-cup), one of the most celebrated teams never to win the tournament[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates). He was also a qualified medical doctor, a rarity among professional footballers, and a political activist who co-founded the Corinthians Democracy movement against Brazil's military dictatorship[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name and dates | Sócrates Brasileiro Sampaio de Souza Vieira de Oliveira, born 1954 in Belém, died 4 December 2011 aged 57[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates) |
| Position and role | Attacking midfielder and captain of Brazil at the 1982 World Cup; also played at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates) |
| International record | 60 games for Brazil from 1979 with 22 goals, by the Guardian obituary's count; the Brazilian federation's records list 63 games and 25 goals including unofficial matches[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates) • [2](https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/especial/2006/copa/todos_os_brasileiros-1986.shtml) |
| Club career | Botafogo of Ribeirão Preto (1974–78), Corinthians (1978–84), Fiorentina (1984–85), Flamengo (1986–87), Santos (1988–89)[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates) |
| Corinthians record | 172 goals in 297 matches; three São Paulo state championships (1979, 1982, 1983)[3](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/05/socrates-garforth-town-politics-courage) • [2](https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/especial/2006/copa/todos_os_brasileiros-1986.shtml) |
| Political legacy | Co-founder of Corinthians Democracy, the players' movement that challenged both club authoritarianism and Brazil's military government[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates) |
## Playing career
Sócrates began at Botafogo in [Ribeirão Preto](https://www.edgepedia.org/ribeirao-preto), where he studied medicine while playing, and joined Corinthians of São Paulo in 1978[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates) • [4](https://www.cbf.com.br/selecao-brasileira/noticias/jogadores-imortais/tricampeao-do-mundo-em-70-jairzinho-completa-74-anos/tbtdaamarelinha-o-doutor-socrates). He spent the greater part of his career there, scoring 172 goals in 297 matches[3](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/05/socrates-garforth-town-politics-courage). He later joined Fiorentina in Italy in the 1984–85 season, despite having said in 1981 that he would never play in Italy for money, then returned to Brazil with Flamengo in 1986–87 and Santos in 1988–89[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates).
**Style of play.** Standing 6 ft 3 in tall, bearded and languid, he was known for a frictionless, understated grace and a fondness for the backheel; Pelé remarked that Sócrates played better going backwards than most footballers going forward[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates). He described himself as an anti-athlete, smoking heavily and drinking beer while still performing at the highest level[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates).
## The 1982 World Cup
Telê Santana, the Brazil manager, made Sócrates captain of a side remembered for its profusion of midfield talent: Sócrates, Zico, Paulo Roberto Falcão, and Toninho Cerezo[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates). Brazil beat the Soviet Union 2–1, Scotland 4–1, and New Zealand 4–0 in the opening group phase, with Sócrates scoring a long-range equalizer against the Soviet Union[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates) • [4](https://www.cbf.com.br/selecao-brasileira/noticias/jogadores-imortais/tricampeao-do-mundo-em-70-jairzinho-completa-74-anos/tbtdaamarelinha-o-doutor-socrates).
In the decisive second-round match against Italy at the Sarrià stadium in Barcelona, Brazil needed only a draw to reach the semi-finals. Sócrates scored in the 12th minute, beating the Italian goalkeeper [Dino Zoff](https://www.edgepedia.org/dino-zoff) at his near post to equalize [Paolo Rossi](https://www.edgepedia.org/paolo-rossi)'s opening goal, but Italy won 3–2 and went on to lift the trophy[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates). Along with the 1954 [Hungarians](https://www.edgepedia.org/hungarians), the 1982 Brazilians became known as the best team never to have won the World Cup[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates).
He also played at the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, scoring against Spain and Poland, but Brazil lost the quarter-final to France on penalties, with Sócrates one of the non-scorers[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates).
## Corinthians Democracy
While at Corinthians, Sócrates co-founded the Corinthians Democracy movement with his teammate Wladimir, an organized response to the authoritarian way the club's management controlled its players, a microcosm of Brazil's military government[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates). The players discussed and voted by show of hands on matters affecting them, from mealtimes to challenging the concentracao, the practice of effectively locking players in a hotel for a day or two before matches[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates).
The movement broadened beyond football. In November 1982, despite warnings from the Brazilian football association, the players wore shirts reading "Vote on the 15th", urging the public to take part in elections that were among the first moves toward ending the dictatorship[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates). At the end of 1982 Corinthians won the São Paulo state championship with "Democracia" printed on the back of their black shirts, which Sócrates called "perhaps the most perfect moment I ever lived"[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates). He celebrated goals with a raised clenched fist, a salute to the Black Panther movement[4](https://www.cbf.com.br/selecao-brasileira/noticias/jogadores-imortais/tricampeao-do-mundo-em-70-jairzinho-completa-74-anos/tbtdaamarelinha-o-doutor-socrates).
## Later life and death
In 2004, at the age of 50, Sócrates made a one-off substitute appearance for the English non-league club Garforth Town against Tadcaster Albion, a 12-minute cameo widely regarded as a publicity stunt[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates).
He died on 4 December 2011 in a São Paulo hospital, aged 57, of severe septicaemia following an intestinal infection contracted after treatment for food poisoning[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates) • [3](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/05/socrates-garforth-town-politics-courage). On the same day, Corinthians sealed the Brazilian championship, and fans honored him with chants of "Doctor", his nickname[3](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/05/socrates-garforth-town-politics-courage). His younger brother Raí was a member of the Brazil squad that won the 1994 World Cup[1](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates).
## References
1. [Sócrates obituary, The Guardian (Brian Glanville, 4 December 2011)](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/04/socrates)
2. [Folha Online, Todos os brasileiros: 1986 (Sócrates profile)](https://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/especial/2006/copa/todos_os_brasileiros-1986.shtml)
3. [Garforth Town owner hails impact of Brazil's Socrates, The Guardian (5 December 2011)](https://www.theguardian.com/football/2011/dec/05/socrates-garforth-town-politics-courage)
4. [#TBTdaAmarelinha O Doutor Sócrates, Confederação Brasileira de Futebol](https://www.cbf.com.br/selecao-brasileira/noticias/jogadores-imortais/tricampeao-do-mundo-em-70-jairzinho-completa-74-anos/tbtdaamarelinha-o-doutor-socrates)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Sports, games, and recreation › Association football › Football people and teams › People › Men's footballers of South America › Brazilian men's footballers › Brazilian footballers of the 1970s–1990s*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Edited: Sep 30, 2026; Oct 12, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 21, 2026 · Last review: Oct 21, 2026*
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