The sound is coming from thousands of vuvuzelas, plastic horns that have become popular at sporting events across Europe.
But fans who wish to take the long, tuneless horns to British events, such as Wimbledon, will be disappointed. The All-England Club, which hosts Wimbledon, has decided to ban vuvuzelas for all upcoming sporting events, the BBC reports.
"The message is not to bring them," a spokesperson for the All-England Club told BBC. "We have a list of prohibited items, including rattles and klaxons and vuvuzelas will fall into that category, so the message is not to bring them."
The ban doesn't only covers tennis’ Wimbledon, which starts on June 21. It also ensures that vuvuzelas will not appear at events like rowing’s Henley Royal Regatta and cricket’s Test series against Pakistan.
"We would not permit whistles, horns, trumpets, pianos, vuvuzelas, drums, or any other such instrument within the enclosures of the boat or tent area," a spokesman for the Henley Royal Regatta told the BBC.
Tens of thousands of vuvuzelas have been sold across England, in light of their recent popularity at the World Cup in Johannesburg, South Africa.
While the instruments are popular among many fans, other spectators, as well as players, find them detrimental to the spirit of the game because they block out fan singing and chanting.
London mayor Boris Johnson is in Johannesburg learning about hosting major sporting events, since London will be hosting the 2012 Summer Olympics.
"It [the vuvuzela] just produces a slightly monotone whine doesn’t it? And I think maybe that’s not the effect we’re going to want to see in 2012," Johnson told the BBC.
