Google CEO Sundar Pichai Gives the Christmas "Ugly Sweater" Contest A Cricket Twist

With its first-ever "ugly sweater" competition for staff members, Google celebrated the holidays in style, and Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet and its subsidiary Google, didn't hesitate to enter. He congratulated the victors and posted images from the competition, which was judged by Gemini, on Instagram. Although the inventiveness of each sweater was noteworthy, Pichai's outfit selection was the real star of the show.

"Last week, we concluded 2024 with our inaugural Google-wide ugly sweater holiday competition. It has good taste, I must add, and Gemini was the judge. Pichai posted a number of images to Instagram along with the caption, "Congratulations to the winners and thanks to everyone for the enjoyable year-end."

The images depict the colorful and imaginative "ugly sweaters" that senior Google executives wore to work. Pichai's design was everything but ugly, in contrast to the bright and whimsical designs of most of his peers.

With a fun pattern of two cricket bats, a ball, Christmas trees, and snowflakes, the Google CEO chose a black pullover that was both festive and a reference to his passion for cricket.

Some people might be surprised by Pichai's sweater choice, but those who know him or follow him on social media are aware of his love for cricket. He even aspired to play cricket as a child and looked up to cricketing greats like Sachin Tendulkar and Sunil Gavaskar. In recent times, he even invited Elon Musk to join him.

Here are a few examples of "ugly sweaters" that people have worn to the Google office:

An "ugly sweater" contest: what is it?
A common festive custom around Christmas is the "ugly sweater" contest, in which participants purposefully dress in garish and gaudy sweaters. Christmas trees, reindeer, flashing lights, and large snowflakes are common festive embellishments for these sweaters. Wearing the most hilarious or unusual sweater can help you stand out and enjoy the fun, eccentric side of the holiday season. Usually, the sweater's inventiveness, humor, or ridiculousness are used to determine the winner.