What you need to know
The second Miss Universe judge has resigned days before the pageant, which is scheduled to be held in Bangkok, Thailand, on Friday, November 21st.
French soccer coach and former soccer professional Claude Makelele announced in an Instagram post shared on Tuesday, November 18 that he will no longer referee.
“Unfortunately, I will not be attending Miss Universe 2025,” the short statement began. “Thank you for your understanding and support.”
PEOPLE has reached out to Makerere for comment.
Makelele’s resignation came hours after another contest judge, composer Omar Harhoush, announced his resignation.
In a series of posts on his Instagram Stories, Harfoush expressed “deep confusion and concern” and claimed that an “improvised jury” had been formed to select 30 finalists from the 136 countries scheduled to participate.
Harfoush claimed to have learned about the selection committee through social media. He also claimed that none of the “real” eight judges were present when the group convened.
“The results of this selection are currently kept secret,” the pianist wrote on his Instagram Story.
In a second post on Instagram Stories, Harfoush claimed that the unofficial judging panel is “comprised of individuals who may have a significant conflict of interest due to their (personal) relationships with some of the Miss Universe contestants, including those responsible for vote counting and results management, creating an additional conflict of interest.”
He then claimed to have spoken to Miss Universe officials about his “disapproval of this preliminary selection.” Harfoush claimed that the contest responded by hastily “publishing a list of names associated with the selection on its Instagram page,” but noted that the post did not specify “the (roles) these (individuals) played.”
Presumably he was referring to the recent Miss Universe upload shared on Monday, November 17, featuring a merry-go-round of selectors. Harfoush was not among the eight people included in the post, which was captioned: “Introducing the inspiring members of the Beyond the Crown selection committee for the 74th Miss Universe Competition ✨.”
Carl De Souza/AFP via Getty
Harfoush said the pageant’s reaction caused “even more confusion.”
In her last message on Instagram Stories, Harhoosh concluded that she will not be participating in the next Miss Universe pageant.
“After a rude conversation with (Miss Universe CEO) Raul Rocha about the lack of transparency in the Miss Universe voting process, I have decided to resign from the jury and refuse to participate in this travesty,” Harhouche wrote. We also won’t play any music we made for the event.
On November 18, the Miss Universe Organization posted a statement on the pageant’s official Instagram page announcing its intention to “clarify certain inaccuracies regarding the Beyond the Crown program and the official judging process of the 74th Miss Universe pageant.”
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The group claimed that the comments shared on Harhoosh’s story were inaccurate. “The Miss Universe Organization clarifies that there will be no impromptu juries, no outside parties will be authorized to evaluate delegates or select finalists, and that all pageant evaluations will continue to follow the established, transparent and supervised MUO Protocol,” the statement read.
“In light of[Mr. Harhoush’s]expressions of confusion, public misrepresentations of the program, and statements that she did not want to participate, the Miss Universe Organization respectfully acknowledges her withdrawal from the official judging committee,” the Miss Universe Organization wrote.
The statement further prohibited the former judge from publicly “using, displaying, referencing, or otherwise associating with Miss Universe’s trademarks, service marks, logos, titles, or registered assets in any form, media, or communication, whether digital, written, or oral.”
“The Miss Universe Organization encourages the general public, press and fans around the world to rely solely on verified MUO communications and to continue to support delegates whose leadership, service and dedication reflect the true values of Miss Universe,” the organization concluded.
The judging controversy arose shortly after a video livestreamed via Facebook on November 4 of an altercation between pageant executive Nawat Isaragrisil and Miss Mexico Fatima Bosch went viral.
In the video, beauty queens from all over the world were sitting in front of Isaragrisil. Speaking directly into the microphone, she said all women were expected to “promote the host country.”
The Miss Universe organization did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.
