Socrates (football player)

Sócrates Brasileiro Sampaio de Souza Vieira de Oliveira (born February 19, 1954), more commonly known as simply Sócrates, was a superlative Brazilian football player. That name he got from the fact that he tended to read numerous books, while some of his team-mates considered this sufficiently eccentric to occasion fixing upon this characteristic to endow a familiarizing "nickname".

His ability to read the game was highly valued, but his touch on the ball was impeccable as well. His signature was the blind heel pass.

As one of the best midfielders in football history, he played in his country's national team in the 1982 and 1986 World Cups. He is also a noted intellectual, and a heavy smoker.