Vuvuzela – The Sound of African Soccer
A Plastic Stadium Horn for the 2010 Soccer World Cup
Aug 21, 2009
Judging from the results of the recent 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, some of the European players, fans and television crew were not too happy with the droning of the vuvuzelas, which sound like a swarm of very angry bees. They even appealed to soccer’s governing body FIFA to ban the vuvuzela from the 2010 World Cup.
Vuvuzelas and 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup
The announcement on 15 May 2004 that South Africa would host the FIFA World Cup in 2010 gave the vuvuzela a major boost, with some 20 000 sold on the day.
The debate around the vuvuzela will always generate more noise than the instrument makes. In this "Ban the Vuvuzela" debate FIFA has also come to the party. The world football governing body said on 11 July 2008 that fans could bring their vuvuzelas to stadiums for 2010 World Cup matches, in spite of those calling for the vuvuzela to be banned.
At a debate that lasted several hours, the South Africa 2010 Local Organizing Committee convinced FIFA that the vuvuzela was essential for “an authentic South African footballing experience.
What is a Vuvuzela?
It is brightly colored, about a meter long and is a standard part of a South African soccer fan’s kit. In the USA, they would probably call it a stadium horn. A vuvuzela is a long plastic trumpet that South African soccer fans blow loudly, enthusiastically and rhythmically during football matches.
In South Africa, the history of the vuvuzela is heavily debated - some talk about kelp horns and fishing horns like the whale crier blows in the Cape fishing town of Hermanus, others talk about kudu horns, and swear that the ancestor of the vuvuzela is the kudu horn - blown to summon African villagers to meetings. Later versions were made of tin.
Kuduzela - a Black Plastic Kudu Horn
Recently the kudu horn- version has resurfaced as a kind of rival to the vuvuzela - the rather unsightly kuduzela (a long, curved black plastic horn) . Yet others refer to the origins of the vuvuzela as the tin trumpets that some religious groups blow.
But South African soccer fans do not really care where the vuvuzela came from; they just enjoy their vuvuzelas. They love making a beautiful noise for the beautiful game, blowing the horns at the soccer matches and cheering for their stars. And the soccer players say that they feel inspired and uplifted by the sound of their fans making a noise for themin the stands.
Where to Buy a Vuvuzela
In South Africa, Vuvuzelas can be bought on the way to most matches from one of the vendors next to the road or from some sports shops, football clubs, and supermarkets. Vuvuzelas are also for sale online.
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