In the UK in the late 1980's there was a sudden fashion for loose fitting boxer shorts as underwear. These cheaply made and printed boxer shorts replaced cotton briefs that most men and boys then wore at that time. The boxer shorts were actually longer than the nylon football (soccer) shorts then in use and football players would either show a couple of inches of boxer short hem below their football shorts or would pull their football shorts down to hide their underwear. If a footballer sat down a viewer in the right position could look up both the football and boxer shorts to see the footballers private parts.
Football and other shorts became longer to hide the boxer shorts below and to stop people from looking up the wearers shorts.
There was a fashion for wearing long white shorts over black speedos, so the speedos could be seen when wet, then coloured and patterned long shorts became the norm for leisure swimming.
The current underwear preference is for boxer briefs, a cut similar to the square cut swim suit. Shorts are gradually getting shorter as their is less underwear to hide and the well placed viewer can't see up one's shorts.
Mixed Changing Villages with tiny cubicles are a pain but they don't really affect ones choice of swimwear.
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