London mayor Boris Johnson joined the vuvuzela chorus in South Africa on Friday. But he doesn't want the horns to catch on back home.

Johnson arrived in Cape Town on Wednesday to tout his city's hosting of the 2012 Olympics, and his country's bid for the World Cup in 2018.

He said London and England could learn a lot from South Africa's impressive staging of football's biggest event, and offered two blasts from a yellow Bafana Bafana vuvuzela in support. But he didn't seem that impressed with the sound.

"I'm not convinced that we are going to need an Olympic vuvuzela," Johnson said in an appearance full of his typically ironic, off-the-cuff banter. "It's a wonderful thing. It's a beautiful instrument. It's very easy to master, but I don't think we'll necessarily be issuing them to the crowds."

Speaking to journalists at Cape Town's waterfront, Johnson returned to the theme of South Africa's plastic trumpets as he praised local authorities for the atmosphere they've fostered outside stadiums during the World Cup.

"You've had an amazing success in having a party atmosphere," he said.

"I'm very impressed with the vuvuzelas and," he said before adding a theatrical pause, "we're thinking of not having them."

The vuvuzelas have irritated football viewers around the world, and television broadcasters have doubled their audio filters to reduce the constant blaring buzz at matches. Purists have also complained that the instruments detract from the atmosphere in stadiums.

Aside from vuvuzelas, Johnson focused on London's preparations for the Summer Games in two years' time and predicted that the event would prove a remarkable success from an economic and sporting point of view. London's facilities are "extraordinary" and its cosmopolitan atmosphere means there will be home support for dozens of nations, he said.

"London is the greatest city on Earth," Johnson said, "with all respect to Cape Town, which is in the top two or three."

The 45-year-old mayor said the preparations also have helped England's hopes for the 2018 World Cup, even as he acknowledged that the bid had hit a "rocky patch." England has had to reshuffle its organising committee after ex-chairman David Triesman alleged that Spain would support Russia's bid in exchange for help to bribe referees at the World Cup.

"London is a place where you can be absolutely sure where FIFA will have a fantastic result in terms of the marketing, in terms of the global media impact of the competition," Johnson said. "That will leverage lots more money for FIFA and for world football, to spend on fantastic projects promoting football around the world."

Johnson also backed England to improve throughout the World Cup, and supported goalkeeper Robert Green after the blunder that allowed the United States to secure a 1-1 draw in their opening match. He offered no recommendation to England coach Fabio Capello on whether to replace Green when England plays Algeria in Cape Town on Friday.

"I once was forced to be the goalkeeper, after I kept fouling everybody else," said Johnson. "I wasn't much good at dispossessing people off the ball, without them falling over and crying. So they put me in goal, and it wasn't at all easy.

"I had huge sympathy for Robert Green. I thought actually he made a blinding save in the second half, and I wouldn't presume to advise Fabio Capello. I'm sure he'll make a decision of Olympian wisdom about this matter."

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