Particularly noisy, this instrument will be authorized in German stadiums for Euro 2024.
Remember. In 2010, the Football World Cup introduced the whole world to the vuvuzela, an instrument so noisy in stadiums that it quickly went from amusement to annoyance, sometimes spoiling the show for the supporters, but also the fans. most sensitive viewers. Originally, the vuvuzela, a kind of thin horn 60 to 70 cm long, was made of tin and has been present mainly in South African stadiums since the 1990s, in football, but also rugby. With the 2010 World Cup, plastic vuvuzelas appeared, less expensive and therefore easier to sell, so much so that they spread like hot cakes.
So widespread that shrill horns were subsequently banned from many official competitions. Thus, the French football and rugby championships decided to ban them, just like the Wimbledon tennis tournament or World Rugby, during the 2011 World Cup. FIFA, for its part, banned vuvuzelas during of the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
A traditional instrument of South African supporters, the vuvuzela is however still authorized during the African Cups of Nations and we saw it in the stadiums during the 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2023 editions. But for Euro 2024 which is organized in Germany , there is no question of seeing it in stadiums since UEFA has banned them since 2010, in the same way as the megaphone or other “mechanical devices emitting sound”.
However, the organizing body of European football was more lenient on another equally criticized instrument and decided to spare a selection. Or rather a thistle, since Scotland will benefit from special authorization for its supporters during Euro 2024: the latter will be able to bring into the stadiums not vuvuzelas, but their famous bagpipes. A true national instrument, the bagpipes accompanies Scottish players in all sports, and will also be the case in June for football.
However, UEFA does not want to see bagpipes in all German venues. Also, supporters wishing to bring their instrument will have to register in advance with the Scottish Football Association. The latter must then ensure their proper use. “It will be responsible for centralizing the activities of its supporters inside the stadium,” confirmed the UEFA spokesperson.
It is indeed not good to forbid the Scots from using their bagpipes to support their team. During the Rugby World Cup in 2015, the English and Welsh organization of the event had indeed provoked the anger of their neighbors, from supporters to players. The incomprehension of this decision even reached the Scottish parliament, which had launched a parliamentary petition to force the organization to modify the rules and allow the Scots to bring their favorite instrument, without success.