Overview
Budgy smugglers are close-fitting swim briefs of stretch nylon or elastane, cut high on the leg and low on the waist, made for swimming rather than lounging. Minimal and quick-drying, they are the racing and surf-lifesaving swimsuit of Australian men.
How it is worn
They are worn at the surf beach, the swimming carnival, and the backyard pool, often under board shorts or on their own by swimmers, lifesavers, and older men of unshakeable confidence. Their briefness is the whole point, and the source of the joke in the name.
History
Brief racing swimwear became standard for competitive and surf swimming in the twentieth century, and Australians gave it the affectionate, faintly mocking name budgy smugglers. It is now as much a national in-joke as a garment, tied to the beach and to a certain larrikin humour.