Can the World Cup be a catalyst of change in Brazil?

As in now customary in the build up to a World Cup, criticism of the host country is easy to find. Scaremongering stories about finance, stadium delays and crime filled the papers from early this year, worrying fans travelling to Brazil. Stories about how violent protests would overshadow the tournament and fears over muggings and petty theft in public areas.

After spending over four weeks in Rio travelling around different parts of the city and suburbs I can safely say that the criticism has been both unfair and exaggerated.

The locals were as friendly and welcoming as anywhere I've ever been, with many offering their welcome to Brazil and trying to show their country in a positive light. They helped lost visitors with directions and transport and on one occasion gave us a free ride to the Estadio Mineirao in Belo Horizonte.

There were small protests and an ongoing under-current of discontent throughout, with plenty of street art and banners displaying people's feelings towards the government and FIFA.

And their feelings are understandable, sewage and rubbish spilled out onto main tourist areas and the permanent state of gridlock means commuting to work every day is not a simple task. The World Cup also leaves huge stadiums with no real use in areas like Manaus and astronomical cost of hosting the tournament still causes anger.

Theft was another major issue and one which could unfortunately be witnessed fairly often. Whether it was kids stealing cakes from street vendors or locals feeling the pockets of fans in large crowds, this sort of crime is an all to common occurrence in Rio.

Having said that, people shouldn't be too worried, thieves are opportunists and will rarely 'attack' anyone, and with a watchful eye I managed to make it through the month without losing anything.

With upcoming elections in October the protests and violence may yet return, and the question is whether any of the countries many problems can be solved before the world's attention return for the Olympics in 2016.