Resigned judge calls ‘Miss Mexico,’ finalists ‘fake’ Miss Universe winners

Lebanese-French musician Omar Harfouch allegedly revealed rigged results of Miss Universe 2025, claiming that 15 finalists and Miss Universe Miss Mexico were already “pre-determined” due to “business,” in an Instagram post today, Nov. 21.

Harfouch shared, 24 hours before the Miss Universe final and aired on American HBO, that he already knew Miss Mexico Fátima Bosch would win, as Miss Universe director Raúl Rocha urged him to support Bosch “because it will be good for our business” due to his dealings with Bosch’s father.

“Miss Mexico is a fake winner. I, Omar Harfouch, declared yesterday exclusively on American HBO, 24 hours before the Miss Universe final, that Miss Mexico would win-because Miss Universe owner Raúl Rocha is in business with Fatima Bosch’s father. All details will be shown in May 2026 on HBO. Raul Rocha and his son urged me, a week ago in Dubai, to vote for #Fatima Bosch because they need her to win, ‘because it will be good for our business,’” Harfouch wrote in an Instagram post today, Nov. 21, 2025.

Harfouch stated he will be filing a formal complaint against the US-based Miss Universe organization for “fraud, abuse of power, corruption, deception, breach of contract, conflict of interest, and emotional and reputational damages.”

“The whole world has just seen the 15 fake finalists (it is exactly the same one I was told about a few days ago) and are starting to understand that I did well to denounce the fraud,” Harfouch added in an Instagram story caption.

Harfouch resigned two days ago from the alleged “impromptu jury,” which reportedly pre-selected finalists before the competition held today, Nov. 21, in Thailand.

According to him, the jury consists of “individuals with a significant potential conflict of interest due to some personal relationships with some of the Miss Universe contestants.”

“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, without elaborating further on the role of the “impromptu jury.”

Hours after Harfouch’s resignation, French football manager Claude Makélélé also pulled out as judge due to “unforeseen personal reasons.”

“I hold Miss Universe in the highest regard. The platform represents empowerment, diversity, and excellence – values I have always championed throughout my career,” Makélélé stated.

The Miss Universe Organization responded to rebut Harfouch’s claims, stating that no external judges have been authorized to select finalists, and may have confused Harfouch with the Beyond the Crown programme, a “social impact initiative” with a separate selection committee.

This committee was announced by the Miss Universe Organization on Monday, and the organization said Harfouch had allegedly misunderstood the programme.

The Miss Universe director faced backlash before the competition as video of him calling out Miss Mexico circulated on social media, which also prompted contestants to walk out during the incident.