Miss Mexico Fatima Bosch has been crowned the new Miss Universe in Thailand on Friday, marking the end of an exceptionally scandal-filled pageant season.
The 25-year-old contestant had earlier in November walked out of a pageant event after an official publicly berated her in front of dozens of contestants and threatened to disqualify those who supported her.
A week after, two judges resigned, with one of them accusing organisers of rigging the competition.
Miss Universe, founded in the US, is one of the longest-running beauty pageants on the planet. The recent controversies, analysts say, underscore the cultural and strategic differences between the pageant's Thai and Mexican owners.
The pageant saw Thailand's Praveenar Singh place second while the rest of the top five included Venezuela, the Philippines and Cote d'Ivoire.
Thailand is hosting Miss Universe for the fourth time and its delegate this year was considered a frontrunner by fan websites.
The crowning of the new Miss Universe, the 74th since 1952, signals the resolve of an organisation to stay relevant and evolve from a once-a-year television spectacle to a media brand that is ready for TikTok.
The pageant events are being organised by Thai media mogul Nawat Itsaragrasil, who is known to fans as the founder and owner of Miss Grand International, a smaller Thai-based contest that is known for its loud social media presence.
Nawat holds the licence to host this year's Miss Universe pageant, while the organisation is being run out of Mexico by businessman Raul Rocha.
North, Central and South American queens dominated the contest in its early years, but recent decades have seen the rise of fandoms in South East Asia, most especially in Thailand, the Philippines and Indonesia, where pageant crowns have become a way out of poverty or an express pass for girls dreaming of becoming a celebrity.
But things took a dramatic turn at a pre-pageant ceremony early this month, when Nawat told off Miss Mexico, Fatima Bosch, in front of dozens of contestants for failing to post promotional content.
When she objected, Nawat called security and threatened to disqualify those supporting her. Bosch then left the room and others joined her in solidarity.
The Miss Universe Organisation condemned Nawat's behaviour as "malicious" and Rocha, speaking by video from Mexico, told his Thai business partner to just "stop".
Nawat later apologised and claimed that some of his words were misunderstood, but a delegation of international executives were sent to take over running the competition.
A week later, two judges resigned with one of them accusing organisers of rigging the selection process.
Lebanese-French musician Omar Harfouch, who announced his resignation from the eight-member jury on Instagram, alleged that an "impromptu jury" had pre-selected finalists ahead of the final on Friday. Hours later, former French football star Claude Makelele also announced he'd pulled out, citing "unforeseen personal reasons".
The Miss Universe Organisation rejected Harfouch's claims, saying that "no external group has been authorised to evaluate delegates or select finalists".
It suggested that Harfouch may have been referring to the Beyond the Crown programme - a "social impact initiative" that operates independently from the main Miss Universe competition, and has a separate selection committee.
Then during the preliminary evening gown round on Wednesday night, Miss Jamaica accidentally fell onstage and had to be rushed out of the theatre in a stretcher. She is recovering in hospital.
The string of controversies comes as Miss Universe transitions to a new leadership after Thai transgender media mogul Anne Jakrajutatip resigned as CEO just before the pre-pageant events and was replaced by Guatemalan diplomat Mario Bucaro.
Ms Jakrajutatip acquired the pageant from US entertainment company Endeavor in 2022. She made sweeping changes towards inclusivity, allowing transgender women, married women and women with children to participate. She also scrapped the age cap for contestants.
As audiences declined over the years, she sought to monetise the Miss Universe brand, stamping it on merchandise such as bottled water and bags.
In 2023, her entertainment company JKN, filed for bankruptcy, citing "liquidity problems".
