Futbol Fanatics

VUVUZELAS CAUSING A BUZZ AT FIFA WORLD CUP

Like many Americans, I'm not a big futbol fan (that would be soccer for most of us). I have gained a bit of appreciation over the last couple of years as I announced a few of the university's soccer matches as well as gotten to know coaches and skilled players at school. Thus, I have a greater appreciation of the chess match that is European football as opposed to the tug of war, smash-mouth american version. But the buzzing is unnerving.
If you've watched any of the FIFA World Cup on television you've noticed a few things: one of them, of course, was the inconceivable lack of focus on the part of the English keeper as he lets a ball that I could have stopped get by him for the only American goal. The other, of course, was the incessant noise that seems to be surrounding play...like the microphones are not working properly. Actually, though, there is a logical explanation.
Unknown to me before this moment, the vuvuzela horn is the source for the buzz. Almost a meter long, the horn has no valves but is blown much like a trumpet, and a buzzing sound like a "raspberry" is emitted. Put thousands of these into thousands of hands of rabid futbol fans...and you get an annoying buzz.
FIFA had discussed the idea of banning the horns, but they have become an integral part of African soccer since the mid-1990s that the outcry would have been worse than the buzzing (which must be rather loud inside the stadium).
I guess it's better than having hooligans run amok.