João Schmidt

João Felipe Schmidt Urbano (born 19 May 1993), known as João Schmidt, is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Santos.

São Paulo
Schmidt was born in São Paulo, and joined São Paulo FC's youth sides in 2005, aged 12. He made his first team – and Série A – debut on 18 July 2012, starting in a 1–0 home loss to Vasco da Gama.

Definitely promoted to the first team ahead of the 2013 season, Schmidt only featured rarely for Tricolor in the following years.

Loan to Vitória de Setúbal
In July 2014, Schmidt moved abroad for the first time in his career, joining Primeira Liga club Vitória de Setúbal on loan for the season. He made his debut abroad on 17 August, starting in a 2–0 away loss to Rio Ave.

Schmidt scored his first professional goal on 24 August 2014, netting his side's second through a penalty kick in a 2–0 home win over Gil Vicente. He was a regular starter for Vitória during his loan spell, contributing with eight goals in 34 appearances overall.

Return from loan
Schmidt returned to São Paulo in June 2015, but was rarely used by head coach Juan Carlos Osorio during the remainder of the year. He was close to a loan move to Avaí in February 2016, but the move did not materialize, and he later started to feature regularly under head coach Edgardo Bauza.

Schmidt scored his first goal for Tricolor on 6 April 2016, netting his team's third in a 6–0 home routing of Trujillanos, for the year's Copa Libertadores. After finishing the year as a starter, he rejected a contract renewal and agreed to a pre-contract with Italian side Atalanta in January 2017.

Atalanta
On 8 July 2017, Atalanta officially announced Schmidt. He made his debut for the club on 20 December, replacing Nicolas Haas in a 2–1 Coppa Italia home win over Sassuolo, but failed to feature in any Serie A matches during the season.

Loan to Rio Ave
On 6 July 2018, Schmidt returned to Portugal and joined Rio Ave on a one-year loan deal, with an option to make the move permanent. He immediately became a first-choice at his new club, scoring a brace in a 7–0 Taça de Portugal home routing of Silves on 25 November 2018.

On 2 February 2019, Rio Ave and Atalanta agreed to end the loan deal early.

Nagoya Grampus
On 6 February 2019, Nagoya Grampus announced the signing of Schmidt. A first-choice in his first year, he lost his starting spot in the 2020 campaign.

Kawasaki Frontale
On 6 January 2021, Schmidt moved to fellow J1 League side Kawasaki Frontale. He helped the club to retain the league title in his first season, also winning the Japanese Super Cup in 2021 and the Emperor's Cup in 2023.

Santos
On 30 December 2023, Schmidt returned to his home country after more than six years, after being announced at Santos on a one-year deal. He made his debut for the club the following 20 January, starting in a 1–0 away win over Botafogo-SP.

Schmidt scored his first goal for Peixe on 7 February 2024, netting the winner in a 1–0 home success over rivals Corinthians.

International career
Schmit was a member of the Brazil national under-20 team in the 2013 Toulon Tournament, starting in all five matches of the competition.

Honours
São Paulo
 * Copa São Paulo de Futebol Júnior: 2010
 * Copa Sudamericana: 2012

Kawasaki Frontale
 * J1 League: 2021
 * Emperor's Cup: 2023
 * Japanese Super Cup: 2021

Brazil U20
 * Toulon Tournament: 2013

Individual
 * Campeonato Paulista Team of the Year: 2024