The FIFA World Cup tournament is now reduced to 32 teams. As with all sporting endeavours, there are victors and the vanquished but, from what has been shown on television screens across the world, the biggest winners must be the football fans.

Those multitudes fortunate enough to afford the expensive tickets have joyfully filled every stadium with their colourfully inventive attire and boundless enthusiasm. There are watch parties televised in every host city, and also in every community, large or small, throughout the world, except perhaps in Venezuela after the horrific earthquakes. Of course, there are many more fans who watch from their own homes, as the World Cup really has “United The World”, just as the FIFA adverts say.

Watching the World Cup has also been nostalgic for me. Having spent a large chunk of my working life criss-crossing the world’s oceans on freighters and tankers, I am now refreshing memories of visits to so many of the countries taking part, watching the fans in the stadiums representing all ethnicities, creeds and cultures as they enjoy the moment, then remembering all the people I worked with on the ships and alongside in the numerous ports of call.