VUVUZELAS will not be banned at York City’s matches next season – despite a string of top clubs outlawing the controversial plastic trumpets.

But the Minstermen are still asking supporters who plan to bring the droning instruments to games to contact them first before sounding them at Bootham Crescent.

Leeds United have become the latest club to give vuvuzelas their marching orders ahead of the 2010/11 season.

Eight Premier League clubs have also confirmed supporters will be prevented from using them.

Sophie Hicks, City’s community and communications director, said the club was not following suit, although she appealed for fans to let it know in advance if they planned to attend games armed with the horns so they could assess their potential level of use.

She said: “Under Football League ground regulations, air horns are not permitted to be taken into the ground as they could potentially compromise public safety.

“However, there is no reference to vuvuzelas, so this is, at present, very much a grey area.

“The presence of vuvuzelas can enhance the atmosphere within the ground, but they can also be a nuisance to other supporters and potentially spoil their match experience. We would have to take all these factors into consideration should fans enquire about taking vuvuzelas into Bootham Crescent next season.”

Leeds chairman Ken Bates has described vuvuzelas as “awful things”. He said: “They make a dreadful noise and, frankly, we can do without it.”

Arsenal, Birmingham City, Everton, Fulham, Liverpool, Sunderland, Spurs and West Ham have already banned them.

The £2-a-time instruments, which can reach 127 decibels, have been used by African football fans since the 1990s but gained popularity and notoriety in equal measure during the World Cup. Supermarket giant Sainsbury’s has since sold thousands of vuvuzelas, but its rival Asda decided not to stock them on the grounds they were “too annoying”.