Before she resigned, Ms Jakrajutatip brought in Mr Rocha from Mexico as business partner and later tapped Mr Nawat to organise the 2025 pageant.
It has been a “very rocky transition” for the pageant’s leadership, Dani Walker, an American beauty queen and pageant coach told the BBC. She said important roles were now split between leaders in Bangkok and Mexico.
The leadership structure was much clearer when the pageant was being run by Endeavor, and before that, Donald Trump, she said.
“For fans and outsiders, it’s very confusing. No one knows who the real leaders are or who to ask when they have questions, and that’s very damaging to the brand,” Paula Shugart, who served as Miss Universe Organization president under the previous two owners, told the BBC.
Thitiphong Duangkhong, a scholar of women’s and Latin American studies and an expert on beauty pageants, said those behind the pageant should be aware of their cultural differences.
“In our country, we use the Thai language to communicate with our fellow Thais. We understand the social context, we understand social structure, we understand the inequality of power in society, and we constantly try to negotiate with it using the Thai language,” he told the BBC.
Mr Thitiphong said Ms Jakrajutatip being a transwoman might not have sat well with some Latin American fans who subscribe to macho culture.
“There’s talk of women who aren’t women suddenly buying a pageant that’s supposed to be about women’s entertainment. What’s going to happen?”
