John Helm: Bring the ear plugs for football festival
Maybe the decibel level of the instruments could somehow be reduced or areas of a stadium dedicated to fans wishing to bolster their enthusiasm in this nationalistic way – with other areas vuvuzela free zones.
The makaraba’s are no problem at all. They’re hand made helmets decorated by all manner of things – flags, emblems, fruit, messages to the players etc, etc.
And they certainly add to the colour of an event without posing a problem to one’s health or sanity.
The majority of people in South Africa can’t wait for football’s greatest festival in 12 months time but they are grumbling about ticketing, transport and security already.
A normal league game in South Africa between say the exotically named Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates would cost a fan 20 rand to watch (less than two pounds) but Confederations Cup matches (even Iraq v New Zealand) commanded prices of 200 rand – way beyond the normal pocket.
A friend was quoted 1,700 rand for the key semi-final between South Africa and Brazil. Fans are also being asked to park and ride in Rustenburg, which is fine except that the park is about 10 miles from the stadium and many fans have not gained admission to matches until half-time. Needless to say they were not happy.
I hope these issues will be adressed by FIFA and the organising committee, otherwise they’ll get more than a vuvuzela in their ear!
