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Ancient and modern

The true gods of football (hint: they don’t work for Fifa)

No matter how much the players are paid, it’s the spectators who exercise divine wrath

14 June 2014

8:00 AM

14 June 2014

8:00 AM

The World Cup has started, and the gods of football will be in their heaven for a whole month. Not the players, of course: the spectators.

Ancient gods, wielding absolute power, expected to have that power acknowledged. This was usually done by their adherents carrying out specific rituals at the right time and the right place.

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