"It is real, but is a modern parody by townies real?"

Maybe I’m not so cynical/absolutist as you Pete, but if you mean Clun, I think you might be wrong, it’s a very rural community with a small village store. I lived about 25 miles away in an even smaller village of about 16 houses and no store, we had a joint allotment and ate seasonal parody fruit and veg what we growed ourselves, along with the sheep (Morfe Sheep, you can look them up on google) which my next-door neighbours both slaughtered and birthed every year. I also killed and gutted my own rabbits and pheasants which made excellent pretend stews, curries (see curry is a fake ‘pagan’ thing, nothing to do with the seasons, you got me). We all really got off on pretending we were Mr and Mrs Woo-Woo I can tell you. We had cars as well, which of course totally negates the rest of it, including the seasonal village festivals we organised, sharing our own produce, drinking our own brews. Christians came too. In fact I was the only one there you might call a ‘parlour pagan’ as I didn’t go to church, but went out on full moon nights for long walks and contemplations sitting amongst the cows on the way back from the alehouse.

“Its pretence, but if it works for you... enjoy it.”

Pete, you know full well that that’s just patronising cacky-talk masquerading as a veiled insult.

“The real tribal rituals of our time and our place are alive and well at the great temples.”

But that doesn’t address your ‘fake festivals’ which we were discussing? Or are you moving the goalposts so as to score a goal? No, you wouldn't would you?

“There you will see seasonal observation, ceremonial costume, hymns of praise, mascots, violence, warpaint, war cries, blood lust, hero worship, sacrifice, ritual punishment, head hunting and trophy display.”

GOAL!

“Football - love it or hate it, at least its real and doesn't pretend to be something else.”

Football is many things Pete: including (and not limited to) big cut-throat business, an efficient and soulless marketing machine, a great day out, a bar full of bloody faces, a congregation of nationalists exercising their hatred of the ‘other’ under the guise of ‘supporters’, a village green kick about, athletic magic, thousands of ‘real’ supporters, thousands of ‘not’real supporters, charlatans, geniuses, thugs, tag-alongs, worshippers, boys, girls, moms, dads, granddads and even dogs with scarves on. I would be a fool and/ or a self-serving cynic to choose any one of the above things that football is and try and convince a footballer that they are a ‘a parody footballer’ for attending a match.

If I was to adopt your methods of critique/observation, I would take the most objectionable(you might call it fake?)aspects of football, and repeatedly say that all the other aspects were ‘not real’. But I don’t see the ‘reality’ in that approach, its designed to filter out things that don’t re-inforce a narrow view, whilst enlarging the things that do.
Anyhow, I could spen all day defending myself and others against your bigoted assumptions, but you seem to like your views, so, enjoy them I guess.

Onwards...