It was no exception at London's Old Vic theatre. As audience members hunched over their phone screens moments before The Constituent, a political drama, was due to begin, its stars were also in a quandary. They came to an unusual decision.
The play's opening scene was put on hold so performers, production team and audience could watch the tense penalty shootout.
The Constituent's three-strong cast James Corden, Anna Maxwell Martin and Zachary Hart had been watching the match on a rigged-up screen in the theatre's rehearsal room.
Corden told the Guardian: "When it got to extra time, we put on our costumes. The extra time finished about three minutes before the play was due to begin. We thought: 'Oh man, this is tough but we've got to start'.
"Then we heard a 'Yessss' from the audience, and we looked at each other and said: "They're all watching it'. We looked out and there were loads of little lit-up phones in the audience.
"It wasn't the time to start a serious play about serious issues. So me and Anna and Zach went out on stage with an iPad and were commentating [on the shootout].
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