London, Aug. 6: So who won - the Brits or the Brazilians? Who had the better Olympic opening ceremony, London in 2012 or Rio?

One thing all experts are agreed on is that China was perhaps a bit too aggressive in trying to impress the world with its power and might at Beijing in 2008 where the People's Republic allocated a staggering $44 billion.

London spent $10-15 billion but poor Brazil, which is going through rough times, economically and politically, has a budget of $4.6 billion, according to the Saïd Business School at Oxford.

The legendary footballer Pele, 75, who is said to be unwell, was sorely missed last night in Rio but Brazil stole a march on everyone else when the country's best-known supermodel Gisele Bundchen, dressed in a split skirt, sashayed her way across the Maracana stadium to the strains of The Girl From Ipanema.

To be sure, London had a number of advantages. Danny Boyle, who had then just had a hit with Slumdog Millionaire, was put in charge as artistic director.

The image of the Queen apparently jumping from a helicopter, with Daniel Craig by her side, was one of the memorable highlights in London. When it was suggested she might have a brief encounter with James Bond, the Queen was the one who said: "Perhaps I should say something?"

Introducing Mr Bean (Rowan Atkinson) was an example of British humour and the theme tune from the Chariots of Fire was another hit.

For Brazil, the Games come at a time the Senate has voted to impeach the Brazilian President, Dilma Rousseff. Acting President Michel Temer, a 75-year-old law professor, spoke briefly last night without even being introduced and was roundly booed for his pains. There are those who think that Brazil should not be spending money on the Olympics when the country is in such dire straits.

Given these constraints and that Brazil has to contend with the Zika virus that is spread by mosquitoes, Rio managed to put on an opening ceremony that exuded the Brazilian love of life.

There was the ethereal vision of the 100-foot statue of Christ the Redeemer, which has dominated the skyline above Rio for the last 80 years. Last night, it was bathed in the colours of the Brazilian flag, a magical sight. And there was Copacabana Beach, which defines so much of life in Brazil.

Rio might not have been as witty or elaborate as London or as aggressively spectacular as Beijing, but these are the green games which set out to warn the world that we are living on a fragile planet. Each of the 11,000 athletes from some 207 countries has been given a seed which will be planted in a special park.

If Beijing was "look at me" and London witty and self-deprecating, Rio constitutes the green games. Its theme is: "Earthlings, let's replant, let's save the planet!"

In London, rivulets of molten iron were turned into five burning rings, whereas in Rio last night, the five green rings were composed of vegetation. Graphics showed the effects of global warming, the rise in the sea level, and the coastline being inundated in many countries. It was stressed that 60 per cent of the Amazon rain forests are in Brazil.

There is never any way of shortening the parade of athletes. Some, such as Usain Bolt who was due to have been the flag-bearer for Team Jamaica, chose to stay away.

The Indian team, with the women dressed in remarkably dark saris, came and went and received polite applause while the enthusiastic cheering was reserved, for example, for the 500-strong US contingent. The wildest welcome was kept understandably for the home team. There was apparently some jeering for the Russians, whose athletes have mostly got in despite calls by Russia's critics for the country to be banned completely from Rio.

The IOC president, Thomas Bach, a German, had to make the kind of speech that was not required in London.

"Brazilians can be very proud tonight," he said since the people had managed to pull off the Games at "a very difficult time in Brazilian history".

The Games were taking place in a "world of crisis, mistrust, and uncertainty".

"We welcome the refugee Olympic team. Dear refugee athletes," he added, "you are sharing a message of hope to all of the... refugees around the world. You had to flee from your homes because of violence, hunger, or just because you were different. ... In this Olympic world... we welcome you as an enrichment to our unity and diversity."

In many ways, there was something refreshingly honest and simple about Rio. It did not seek to airbrush how Africans came to Brazil. There was a sequence last night that showed African slaves from the Lower Congo and Angola disembarking from ships with their feet in shackles.

Today, "African culture is at the heart of everything in Brazil", which is a real mix of Europeans who arrived from 1,500 onwards, the Syrians and the Lebanese in the 19th century and the Japanese who started coming in the early part of the 20th century.

The opening ceremony in Rio ended with samba and fireworks in the carnival atmosphere anyone would expect from Brazil. These are the 31st Olympic Games. What is remarkable is that since the modern Olympics began in Greece in 1896, this is the first time the Games have been allocated to a country in South America.