 "Fatima Bosch, who walked out on organisers, is Miss Universe 2025. How the pageant was riddled with scandals")
A rocky edition of Miss Universe has come to an end. Mexico’s Fatima Bosch won the crown on Friday (November 21) in Thailand, defeating over 100 contestants to win the 74th Miss Universe title. Thai-Indian Praveenar Singh was declared the first runner-up. Manika Vishwakarma, India’s representative at the contest, was eliminated at the Top 12 round.
Bosch, the 74th Miss Universe, was embroiled in a controversy earlier this month, which brought international attention to the beauty pageant. This edition was marked by a series of scandals, which have raised the question about the relevance of such competitions in today’s world.
Let’s take a closer look.
Miss Mexico berated in Thailand
The Miss Universe 2025 pageant drew flak earlier this month when its Thailand director, Nawat Itsaragrisil, yelled at Miss Mexico Fatima Bosch at a pre-pageant event.
During a meeting with Miss Universe contestants on November 4, Itsaragrisil, who was named the host of the 74th Miss Universe competition in Bangkok, told off Bosch, accusing her of not participating in a promotional event for the beauty pageant.
The confrontation, captured on Miss Universe Thailand’s Facebook livestream, saw Itsaragrisil arguing with Bosch and criticising the Miss Mexico team.
“If you listen to your director, you’re a dumbhead,” Itsaragrisil apparently told Bosch.
He later told reporters that he had used the word “damage.”
“I have a voice,” Bosch told Itsaragrisil after he said to her, “I did not give you an opportunity to talk.”
“You are not respecting me as a woman,” she added.
In videos that went viral of the heated exchange, Bosch and several other contestants could be seen walking out of the event after Itsaragrisil called for security to remove Miss Mexico.
Some could be heard shouting at Itsaragrisil, while the director told them, “If anyone wants to continue the contest, sit down.”
As the beauty pageant drew backlash over the row, the Miss Universe Organisation denounced its Thailand director’s behaviour as “malicious”.
It also sent a delegation of international executives to take over running the competition.
Addressing the controversy, Raul Rocha, president of Miss Universe, restricted Itsaragrisil’s participation in future events of the 74th Miss Universe competition, saying he would not “allow the values of respect and dignity of women to be violated.”
A day after the confrontation, Itsaragrisil apologised in a tearful press conference.
“This issue has dragged me down to this point. I understand and I apologise,” he added. “I am human. I didn’t want to do anything like that.”
Two judges dropped out before Miss Universe finals
Two Miss Universe judges quit days before the finals of the annual beauty pageant, with one of them levelling rigging allegations.
Lebanese-French musician Omar Harfouch announced his resignation from the eight-member jury on Instagram, alleging an “impromptu jury” had pre-selected finalists ahead of the competition.
“An impromptu jury has been formed to select 30 finalists from among the 136 participating countries, without the presence of any of the real [eight] members of the jury, including me,” Harfouch wrote in an Instagram post.
The unofficial jury comprises “individuals with a significant potential conflict of interest due to some personal relationships with some of the Miss Universe contestants”, he claimed.
The Miss Universe Organisation on Tuesday released a statement to deny Harfouch’s claims, saying that “no external group has been authorised to evaluate delegates or select finalists”.
It asserted that Harfouch may have been referring to the Beyond the Crown programme, which it described as an “independent social impact initiative”, and has a separate selection committee.
The Miss Universe Organisation announced the Beyond the Crown selection committee on Monday. In its statement, the organisation said that Harfouch’s allegations had “mischaracterised” the programme.
Hours after Harfouch’s resignation, French football manager Claude Makélélé also announced he had stepped down, citing “unforeseen personal reasons”.
“It is with regret that I must announce that I won’t be able to attend the Miss Universe 2025 event due to unforeseen personal reasons,” he wrote on Instagram. “This was a difficult decision, as I hold Miss Universe in the highest regard. The platform represents empowerment, diversity, and excellence — values I have always championed throughout my career.”
Fall, leadership change, more apologies
During the preliminary evening gown round on Wednesday in Bangkok, Miss Jamaica Gabrielle Henry fell off the stage.
“Thankfully, there are no broken bones and she is under good care,” Rocha’s statement said. “She will remain under observation for the rest of the night.”
Henry is recovering in the hospital.
The series of controversies hit the Miss Universe pageant in the wake of the recent leadership change.
Thai transgender media mogul Anne Jakrajutatip resigned as CEO just before the pre-pageant events.
Jakrajutatip had acquired the pageant from the US entertainment company Endeavor in 2022, promising to usher in a new era for the “global women’s empowerment platform.”
“From now on, it’s going to be run by women, owned by a trans woman, for all women around the world,” she said.
Under her leadership, the contest became more inclusive by allowing married women, transgender women and single mothers to participate.
However, that era did not last long. On October 29, Miss Universe announced former Guatemalan diplomat Mario Búcaro as the new CEO.
Jakrajutatip had quietly resigned in June as her entertainment company, JKN, filed for bankruptcy, citing “liquidity problems”.
On November 6, Miss Chile Inna Moll’s video on TikTok, where she pretends to snort some white powder from a compact on her arm, stirred a controversy. The clip then cut to her in full glam for a Miss Universe event.
Moll quickly reacted to the outrage and apologised for the clip, which was part of the viral “Addicted to You” trend.
“I want to apologise to those who were offended,” she said in the video, according to Hola!. “The makeup artist told me to record it and, maybe because of the language barrier, I didn’t fully grasp what was happening.”
“I said no at first, but he insisted, and I went along. I should have said no firmly,” Moll added.
Taratorn Aek, the makeup artist behind the video, also apologised to Moll on the same day in an Instagram statement, reported Business Insider.
Is it time to bid adieu to Miss Universe?
A debate has always surrounded Miss Universe, one of the longest-running beauty pageants in the world.
The audiences for the broadcast of the beauty pageant have been declining globally as fans shift to social media.
While some have objected to these beauty contests for sexually objectifying women, others argue they celebrate the “strength and beauty” of women’s bodies.
While the business side of Miss Universe remains under scrutiny due to scandals, former queens continue to use their platform to promote their causes, as per BBC.
In this year’s contest, the majority of contestants wore two-piece bikinis. However, the contestants from conservative countries were allowed to wear full-body covering in the swimsuit round.
“Of course, it won’t be for everyone, and there will always be those who disagree. But as long as the core values are intact, I think pageants will always have a role to play in society,” Paula Shugart, former Miss Universe Organization president, told BBC.
She said empowering women should be the main agenda of the organisation. “Miss Universe is nothing if you’re not empowering the women that compete.”
Do these pageants only objectify women or empower them? The debate continues.
With inputs from agencies
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