After 20 days of activities in Thailand, the Miss Universe Organization (MUO) will name on Friday the winner of the current edition, marked by a series of controversies outside the beauty pageant itself.
Since the 120 candidates began arriving in Bangkok at the end of October, the contest has been marked by a series of controversies that ended this week with the resignation of jury members, legal threats and allegations of fraud in the famous competition that will end tomorrow.
The dinner
On November 3, the MUO issued a statement confirming the differences it had with the Miss Grand International (MGI) organization, chaired by Thailand’s Nawat Itsaragrisil and in charge of organizing the pageant in Bangkok.
In that first letter, the MUO warned that it would reserve the right to take legal action against MGI due to the promotion on social networks of a “special dinner” with Nawat, who had called the followers of the contest to vote to choose the 10 misses who would attend this activity.
The Miss Universe team assured that this activity was not authorized and that these votes would not affect the outcome of the pageant, while Nawat insisted that it was part of the agreement with MUO.
Casino
Nawat accused MUO of committing an illegality by allying with a sponsor linked to online casinos, whose operations are illegal in Thailand.
In statements to EFE, the Thai said that MUO, without warning them, brought posters showing the name of an online casino to the hotel where the candidates were staying and where police officers went to look for those responsible.
In front of journalists, the policemen allegedly took a Miss Universe pageant worker to the police station, with no further details known so far.
MUO’s president, Mexican Raul Rocha, said again that he would take legal action against “the series of malicious acts committed by Nawat,” whose MGI pageant competes against Miss Universe in the world of beauty pageants.
The insult
Against this backdrop, Nawat starred in one of the most viral moments of the edition, when he shushed the representative of Mexico, Fatima Bosch, in an act that was broadcast live by MGI and unleashed a wave of criticism against the Thai, including pronouncements from UN Women and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum.
The Mexican delegate demanded respect and the Thai, who denied insulting her despite the video of the moment, apologized repeatedly for what happened, including a theatrical tearful apology at a press conference.
Resignations
Finally, two jury members announced their resignation this week: French-Lebanese pianist and composer Omar Harfouch threatened legal action against MUO for alleged offenses such as “fraud, abuse of power, corruption, deceit, breach of contract, conflict of interest, and moral and reputational damage.”
Through Instagram, the musician made known his decision to resign from the eight-person panel in view of the fact that this week “a secret ballot was held to pre-select 30 contestants” who will be announced as qualified at the beginning of the final gala, a task that, according to him, fell on people who are not part of the selection committee.
In this regard, the MOU responded that no group external to the selection committee had been formed to evaluate the candidates or choose the finalists of the competition, but that a separate panel of judges will study and reward the best social projects promoted by the competitors without this impacting who will win.
In parallel, former French footballer and coach Claude Makélélé, who had been announced as one of the judges, said tersely on his Instragram account that he will no longer attend Miss Universe 2025, without giving further explanation.
While the MUO published photographs of new judges, Harfouch warned the jury that their participation in this contest “could legally implicate them in an act of fraud on a global scale,” reported Agencia EFE.
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