World Cup 2010: Vuvuzelas may be on their way to the Premier League

Posted Tuesday, June 15, 2010 by theguardian.com

• Vuvuzela debate likely to continue after World Cup
• Premier League would welcome the sound in England

The great vuvuzela debate looks likely to run well beyond the World Cup final, after organisers yesterday urged international fans to export the horn to their own countries and the Premier League said it would welcome them in England.

South African organisers today mounted a stout defence of the vuvuzela despite the World Cup organising committee's chief executive Danny Jordaan saying he preferred the sound of singing and would continue to monitor the situation.

As one bookmaker began taking bets on which Premier League club would be first to sell vuvuzelas in their team's colours, a spokesman said there was nothing in its rules that would stop supporters taking them into grounds.

A Premier League spokesman said: "Nothing in our rules specifically prohibits musical instruments from being brought into grounds as these matters are dealt with at a club level. It will be down to stadium managers, in consultation with supporters groups, to determine what is appropriate."

A spokesman for the local organising committee said the horns were here to stay and called on visiting supporters to take them home and introduce them to their own footballing culture.

The loud drone of the vuvuzela has sparked an international debate, with broadcasters inundated with complaints and arguments raging on radio phone-ins.

But South African organisers said today vuvuzelas are an important part of the country's footballing culture and will not be banned unless rules forbidding fans entering the field of play with them are flouted. "There has never been any consideration to ban them. The history of the vuvuzela is ingrained in the history of South Africa," said a spokesman.

"They emanate from the horn used by our forefathers to call meetings. The vuvuzelas are used to express the feelings about the game itself."

He pointed out that the instrument had been adopted by international fans, with the noise of vuvuzelas dominating matches involving European countries too. "Let us not make this a South African instrument alone. The vuvuzela is now an international instrument. People will buy them and stuff them in their suitcases and take them home," he said.

But some South Africans believe that there have only been so many complaints from overseas because the vuvuzelas are being blown indiscriminately by first timers rather than in unison to reflect the ebb and flow of the game, as is the case at South African Premier League matches.

The organising committee spokesman attempted to draw a line under the debate. "This is a world event hosted by South Africa. As our guests, please embrace our culture and the way we celebrate," he said. "We should close this discussion now. We have been talking about it for a year and it will never end. You either love them or you hate them. We in South Africa love them."