Miss USA Pageant Returns to Broadcast TV for 75th Anniversary Following Last Year's Leadership Shakeups

Tabitha ParentWed, June 24, 2026 at 4:53 PM UTC

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Miss USA 2025 Audrey Eckert.Credit: S92 Photography -

Miss USA and Miss USA Teen are returning to broadcast television this summer

On June 23, the franchise owner of both pageants announced that the competitions would return to The CW Network, two years after longtime pageant coach and judge Thom Brodeur took the helm of the pageants following a rocky transition of power from former CEO Laylah Rose

The news comes after The CW did not air the pageants last year, marking the first time that the show had not been televised since 1965

Miss USA and Miss USA Teen are set to return to broadcast television this summer.On June 23, the franchise owner behind the two popular beauty pageants announced that it would be exclusively working with The CW Network as the broadcast partner for both of the 2026 pageants thus upcoming summer.

The pageants' return to broadcast television comes after last year's 2025 competition marked the first time that the pageant had not been shown on broadcast TV since 1965. Instead, in 2025, the pageant streamed on Queen Beauty Network. The return of the pageants also comes after leadership transitions rocked the organization between 2024 and 2025.

Miss Universe 2024 Victoria Kjær Theilvig crowns Audrey Eckert as Miss USA 2025.Credit: S92 Photography

"Bringing Miss USA and Miss Teen USA back to The CW for both competitions is a defining moment as we celebrate 75 years of Miss USA," said president and CEO Thom Brodeur in a press release on Wednesday.Shakeups at the Miss USA organization led to new CEO Thom Brodeur taking over leadership from former president and CEO Laylah Rose in the fall of 2025.Brodeur announced the news of his appointment to the role on Instagram on Sept. 4, sharing that he would be acquiring the rights to the Miss USA and Miss Teen USA brands. However, almost immediately after he announced his new role with the pageant, Rose refuted Brodeur's claim in a message posted to the Miss USA and Miss Teen USA Instagram accounts on Sept. 8.

Then, almost a week later, on Sept. 15, the Miss Universe organization — which owns both Miss USA and Miss Teen USA — officially named Brodeur as Rose's replacement in a press release.The pageant organization had previously struck a three-year deal in April 2024 to air the beauty pageants; however, in May 2024, Miss USA 2023 Noelia Voigt and Miss Teen USA 2023 UmaSofia Srivastava resigned from their positions, accusing the organizers of abuse and bullying.

The occurrence marked the first time that a queen had given up her crown in the pageant's 72-year history. At the time, NBC News obtained a copy of Noelia's resignation letter and reported that Voight accused the pageant's CEO Laylah Rose of creating a toxic workplace after Voigt told her she was sexually harassed at a Christmas event.

Rose denied the allegations at the time in a statement to the Los Angeles Times. "We are very disappointed to hear the recent false allegations made by individuals speaking on behalf of our former titleholder," she said.

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"The allegations of sexual harassment, toxic environment and bullying are not true," Rose's statement continued. "To be clear, such behavior is not accepted, and we can assure you that if such behavior ever occurred, we would take immediate steps to protect our titleholder and provide access to appropriate resources."In an interview with PEOPLE in 2025, Brodeur outlined his hopes for the future of the pageant, as he saw it from his then-new position at its head.

Referencing the former 2023 titleholders, he claimed, "There was some pretty egregious NDA language that suppressed the voices of those two young women and did not give them the ability to speak about their journey. I want to remove that restriction."

Miss USA 2024 streams live from Los Angeles on Aug. 4, 2024.Credit: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty

"I think if you have nothing to hide, there's no reason to hide," Brodeur said. "An NDA should never silence a voice that has something to share, because we can learn from the things that people tell us that we need to improve on."

He also outlined his beliefs that Miss USA and Miss Teen USA should be held to the same standards as other companies with a hierarchy structure, meaning that there should be a process that allows employees and team members to voice their opinions. Such feedback is crucial to internal and external improvement, Brodeur added. "I feel very strongly that un-silencing the voices that have been [silenced] is going to help us do that."

The pageantry expert also plans to scrap the selection committee process that was put in place when Donald Trump owned Miss Universe and its subsidiaries. As Brodeur explains, there was a rule that awarded judging power to the leadership and management teams governing the pageants.

Alma Cooper wins the 2024 Miss USA pageant on Aug. 4 in Los Angeles.Credit: Gilbert Flores/Variety via Getty

"Of course, there's always a panel of judges, but there was also this other voice on the outside that could have input," he explained. "I'm abolishing that. If you tell [the judges] what you're trying to achieve, if you tell them what it means to have the right kind of brand ambassador for your brand and your organization, and you brief them sufficiently, you let them do their job and you let the final result be the one that they give you."The pageants are set to return on Aug. 26 and Aug. 27. Both will air live from the Ziff Ballet Opera House at the renowned Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts in Miami, Florida, per a press release."The CW reaches audiences in every corner of the country, and there is no better stage on which to showcase these 102 extraordinary women as they compete for two of the most iconic titles in the world," Brodeur said in the release, announcing the news of the pageants' return to The CW Network."From the Arsht Center in Miami to the international stages in Cambodia and Puerto Rico, this is a landmark year for our titleholders, and we are proud to share every moment of it live with the American public."

on People

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”