Apologies for the silence, but I have been away. Not soaking up culture exactly, but enjoying some artistic play (and some not so artistic play) in the form of football. I will not be offering specific critiques of games, both because I’m completely unqualified to do so and because, well, they’re over, but here are some general observations.

I must begin by saying what an inspired choice it was to have Brazil host the tournament. We have all read the doom and gloom stories in the press (which always seems to happen) and I make no promises about the Olympics, which are much more complex to host than a World Cup. But this was an excellent World Cup. The people were friendly and fun, the public transport was efficient and timely, the stadiums generally very good, and the beer relatively cheap. The security presence was certainly heavy handed, with military police checking tickets and regular police on (literally) every street corner, but it added to the sense of safety. It is not my place to comment on Brazilian domestic politics so I will refrain from comment on whether the money should have been spent as it was, but what they achieved in terms of hosting the world’s premier football tournament was considerable.

The atmosphere at the games themselves was one of genuine joy. Everyone was incredibly friendly and welcoming. There were, of course, a lot of Americans everywhere, but one could sense the presence of a rising middle class in many other countries, such as Mexico and South Korea. Brazilians generally wore their own team’s shirts, but would customise with face paint supporting one of the countries playing in the game. That did not always last, however, and we were treated more than once to the entertaining sight of a Brazilian fan with a Belgian flag painted on his cheek cheering loudly for South Korea.

People at the World Cup really, really love the wave. I have never seen it entered into with such enthusiasm. And while discussing the wave, please can people in the UK refrain from calling it the “Mexican wave”? It has been almost 30 years since the World Cup in Mexico and no one else calls it that. In addition, whilst everyone was very friendly to us, it was notable that European teams (and that of the USA) were less popular among Brazilians than other teams, which is certainly understandable.

A final couple of notes, some of which are applicable to London theatre as well. First, if you are going to hold up a flag, make sure it’s the right way around to the venue/cameras, not to you. It doesn’t matter if the flag is symmetrical, of course, but we all know what a backwards US flag looks like. In addition, I have noticed a disturbing epidemic of people refusing to stand up to allow others to access their seats. I don’t mind so much once play (or, the play) has begun, but before the performance, there is no excuse. Those are their seats, yes it’s tedious to stand, but it’s how theatres work. Get up and let people in.

Very last observation: James Rodriguez from Colombia is going to be the world’s next superstar. Utterly amazing player. Do watch Colombia’s match against Brazil on 4 July to see what I mean.