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Six contestants from Southeast Asia are likely to miss this year’s Miss Universe after a dispute between the pageant’s two ownership groups put their eligibility in doubt.
On 18 September, JKN Universe LLC, the company that owns the Miss Universe brand, said contestants from Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Laos, Malaysia, and Singapore wouldn’t be eligible to compete at the 75th Miss Universe in Puerto Rico in November.
In a statement, it said Miss Universe Eastern Pte Ltd, a company run by Thai businessman Nawat Itsaragrisil, had no authority to grant or transfer rights to the Miss Universe brand.
It said the franchise agreements for the six countries had been made without a valid licensing agreement with JKN Universe and were therefore “unauthorised” and “void” from the outset.
The announcement was rejected by MU East, responsible for the pageant’s eastern territories, which said it had “not reviewed or approved” the statement and that it did not represent the agreed position of Miss Universe’s two owners.
MU East claimed that it had the contractual right to send “six duly selected and eligible delegates” from Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam, Laos, Malaysia, and Singapore whose participation “shouldn’t be blocked, delayed or affected” by the disagreement between the two sides.
It also rejected JKN Universe’s attempt to invalidate the franchise agreements. “MU East does not accept that valid agreements made under its territorial rights can be cancelled through a one-sided public statement,” it said.
This puts the contestants in an extraordinary position: one side of the organisation claims they cannot compete while the other says their places are protected by its agreements with the national franchise holders.
Itsaragrisil was appointed chief executive of MU East on 31 July and was described as taking charge of a team representing 95 countries.
He said he would work with national directors, delegates and commercial partners across the eastern region.
Speaking at a press conference on 18 September, he backed the six contestants and said they would travel to Puerto Rico despite JKN Universe’s announcement.
“I am not going, but the contestants are definitely going,” Itsaragrisil said, according to The Nation.
Of the six affected countries, only Thailand has chosen its representative so far, with Tharina Botes crowned Miss Universe Thailand in August. Malaysia and Vietnam are due to pick their contestants next month.
At last year’s competition in Bangkok, several contestants walked out of a pre-pageant event after Itsaragrisil publicly reprimanded Miss Mexico Fátima Bosch over her participation in promotional activities.
Itsaragrisil called Bosch a “dumb head” during the exchange and asked security to remove her from the event.
The confrontation led to several contestants, including then-Miss Universe Victoria Kjær Theilvig of Denmark, to leave in support of Bosch.
Miss Universe president Raúl Rocha later condemned Itsaragrisil’s behaviour and said his involvement in the 2025 competition would be “restricted”.
Itsaragrisil apologised, saying in Thai: “If someone doesn’t feel well, if someone feels uncomfortable, if anyone was affected, I apologise to everyone. I already spoke and apologised to the rest of the girls in the room, about seventy-five girls.”
