The noise comes from the fans in the stands and is made by the "vuvuzela," a trombone-length plastic horn that South African soccer fans, in particular, enjoy using at matches. The horn is pictured above.
The first match of the Cup began Friday morning ET with South Africa taking on Mexico. If you tuned in to the match on ESPN, you likely noticed the "drone" immediately.
According to
SouthAfricainfo, the vuvuzela may be a descendant of the kudu horn - "blown to summon African villagers to meetings." One of its modern day chief manufacturers/distributors, however,
Boogieblast, has an entirely different story:
"The vuvuzela was introduced to South Africa as a toy for kids to blow, and hardly got off the ground. Selling the vuvuzela proved almost impossible, until the full potential was realized by the local soccer supporters.
The first prototype was from America and changed somewhat for more comfortable blowing and effectiveness. We have researched the history of the Vuvuzela, and follows a trail back to a women's Chinese basketball team, AMAZING...
The word, VUVUZELA, was first used by a few soccer supporters. There are many claims to what the word really means, but more generally it means to pump up one's performance in a truly South African manner."
