Vuvuzelas banned from making Wimbledon racket

London : Their deafening, droning din might be the soundtrack of the football World Cup, but Wimbledon chiefs will not have vuvuzelas making a racket at the tennis championships.

The All England Club has banned the ear-splitting, tuneless horns, fearing they will spoil the atmosphere and put off the players.

They fear the reverential hush that follows an umpire's request for "Quiet, please, the players are ready", would be followed by show-offs blasting out a honking noise louder than a chainsaw.

And as per usual every time the World Cup or European football championships clash with the tennis tournament, there will be no football matches shown on the big screens at Wimbledon.

"From a noise point of view they could be very distracting to the players and spectators. We think the fans will understand," a Wimbledon spokesman said.

He added: "We understand that people would like to follow the World Cup but there are plenty of ways to do that without watching it here on the big screens."

Wimbledon, one of tennis's four Grand Slams, starts on Monday.