Joheirry Mola Dominguez of the Dominican Republic was crowned Miss World 2026 on 5 September 2026 at the April 2nd Square in Nha Trang, Vietnam. The 73rd Miss World finale brought together 111 contestants, and Mola received the crown from Opal Suchata Chuangsri of Thailand, Miss World 2025. Nikita Porwal of Madhya Pradesh represented India at the pageant and reached the Top 40.
Who Is Miss World 2026
Miss World 2026 is Joheirry Mola Dominguez, a 24 year old teacher, journalist and model from Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic. She won the 73rd Miss World crown on 5 September 2026 in Nha Trang, Vietnam, defeating 110 contestants to become the second winner from her country.
The Miss World Organisation crowned Joheirry Mola Dominguez, born on 27 September 2001 in Santo Domingo, as the new queen. She holds a degree in Business Management and Administration from the Universidad Iberoamericana (UNIBE) in the Dominican Republic. She works as a Literature and Social Studies teacher, teaching in English with a focus on critical thinking and all round development.
Mola also works as a news correspondent for Ventana a Quisqueya on Univision New York, where she reports on Dominican culture, social issues and community stories. She is the founder and president of Voices of Tomorrow, a social initiative that expands English education for children and young people in vulnerable communities. The project aims to give learners better access to study, work and communication opportunities.
During the 2026 contest, Mola first won the Top Model title for the Americas and Caribbean region, which secured her place in the Top 40. She then moved through the Top 20, Top 12 and Top 6 stages to win the final crown. Elisabeth Reynes of Spain finished as first runner up, while Taanusiya Chetty of Malaysia finished as second runner up. The Top 6 also included contestants from Eritrea, Vietnam and South Africa, with Vietnam represented by home favourite Le Nguyen Bao Ngoc.
73rd Edition in Vietnam: Date, Venue and Selection Process
The Miss World Organisation announced Vietnam as the host country on 25 March 2026. This was the first time Vietnam hosted the pageant. The full festival ran from 8 August to 5 September 2026, and the grand final took place on 5 September 2026 at the April 2nd Square in Nha Trang, Khanh Hoa province. The show was presented by Stephanie Del Valle, Miss World 2016, and Daniel Mejia, Mister World 2024, before a live audience of about 20,000 people.
The 2026 contest was the 73rd edition of Miss World. It was staged as the 75th anniversary festival, since the pageant was first held in 1951. Contestants toured three main host cities before the closing week in Nha Trang.
| Host City | Period | Main Activities |
|---|---|---|
| Quang Ninh | 8 to 11 August | Arrivals, welcome reception and opening ceremony |
| Hai Phong | 13 to 19 August | Presentation, talent, Top Model and sports events |
| Nha Trang | 21 August to 5 September | Head to Head Challenge, interviews, Dances of the World and grand final |
A total of 111 contestants took part, with 40 placements. Five territories made their debut, including Eritrea, French Guiana, Maldives, Mozambique and Pakistan. Several countries returned after a break, including Bahamas, Laos, Morocco, South Korea and Tanzania.
The Miss World Organisation divided all contestants into four continental groups for judging. The four groups are Africa, Americas and Caribbean, Asia and Oceania, and Europe. The road to the crown moved from Top 40 to Top 20 to Top 12 to Top 6. Ten contestants from each continental group reached the Top 40. Five from each group then reached the Top 20.
Special fast track events played a central role in selection. The five key challenges were Beauty With a Purpose, Multimedia, Head to Head, Top Model and Peoples Choice. Winners of these challenges earned direct entry into higher rounds. The Beauty With a Purpose winner received a guaranteed place in the Top 6, which shows how strongly the pageant values social work. Public voting for Peoples Choice also sent two contestants to the Top 12 and one contestant to the Top 6. From the final six, judges named the winner and two runners up.
India at Miss World 2026: Nikita Porwal
India was represented at Miss World 2026 by Nikita Porwal, Femina Miss India World 2024. She hails from Ujjain in Madhya Pradesh and reached the Top 40 in Nha Trang. Her entry carried special interest because she was the 60th Miss World India and the first woman from Madhya Pradesh to win the Femina Miss India World title.
The Miss World India title came through the Femina Miss India 2024 finale, held in Mumbai on 16 October 2024. Porwal succeeded Nandini Gupta, Femina Miss India World 2023, who had represented India at Miss World 2025 in Hyderabad. Porwal completed her schooling at Carmel Convent Senior Secondary School in Ujjain and studied at the Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda. She started work as a television anchor at the age of 18 and later built a career as an actor and model.
Porwal is closely linked with theatre and storytelling. She has performed in more than 60 plays and wrote a 250 page play titled Krishna Leela. She has also played a lead role in a feature film shown at international festivals. For the Miss World stage, her Beauty With a Purpose project focused on cervical cancer awareness, a cause she had first raised during the Femina Miss India finale. The project promotes HPV vaccination and regular screening, since cervical cancer is the second most common cancer among women in India yet is largely preventable. She has also spoken strongly for animal welfare and compassion toward all living beings.
The Miss World Organisation and Beauty With a Purpose
The Miss World Organisation is the body that owns and runs the Miss World pageant. It is headquartered in London, United Kingdom. The pageant was created by British promoter Eric Morley in 1951 as part of the Festival of Britain. Sweden’s Kiki Hakansson became the first Miss World in 1951. After Eric Morley died in 2000, his wife Julia Morley took charge as chairwoman and chief executive and continues to lead the organisation.
Miss World is the oldest running international beauty pageant in the world. It is normally held every year, though the schedule has shifted in some years due to global events. Along with Miss Universe, Miss International and Miss Earth, it is counted among the Big Four international pageants. The organisation works through national licence holders in more than 100 countries, who select their representatives through local contests such as Femina Miss India in India.
The heart of Miss World is Beauty With a Purpose, a social service programme launched in 1972. Under this programme, each contestant presents a community project on health, education, environment or welfare. Julia Morley gave the programme its name with the idea that young women should use their talent to help less fortunate people. The organisation states that Beauty With a Purpose has raised more than 1 billion pounds for children’s charities and supported work in over 140 countries. In recent editions, strong Beauty With a Purpose projects earn fast track entry into the finals, which is why Malaysia’s Taanusiya Chetty, the Beauty With a Purpose winner in 2026, also secured a high placement.
How Many Miss World Titles Has India Won
India has won the Miss World title six times. The six Indian winners are Reita Faria in 1966, Aishwarya Rai in 1994, Diana Hayden in 1997, Yukta Mookhey in 1999, Priyanka Chopra in 2000 and Manushi Chhillar in 2017. This record makes India one of the most successful countries in the history of the pageant.
| Year | Winner From India | Notable Fact |
|---|---|---|
| 1966 | Reita Faria | First Indian and first Asian to win, later became a doctor in Dublin |
| 1994 | Aishwarya Rai | Won at age 21 in Sun City, South Africa, later became a leading actor |
| 1997 | Diana Hayden | Also won Miss Photogenic and Asia and Oceania titles |
| 1999 | Yukta Mookhey | Civic activist and model from Mumbai |
| 2000 | Priyanka Chopra | Won at age 18 at the Millennium Dome in London |
| 2017 | Manushi Chhillar | Medical student from Haryana, won after a 17 year gap |
The Miss World journey for India began with Reita Faria of Mumbai in 1966. She was a medical student at the time and chose medicine over films after her reign. After a gap of 28 years, Aishwarya Rai brought the crown home in 1994. In the same year, Sushmita Sen won Miss Universe, making 1994 a landmark year for India in pageantry.
India then recorded a strong run in the late 1990s. Diana Hayden won in 1997, Yukta Mookhey won in 1999 and Priyanka Chopra of Jamshedpur won in 2000 at the age of 18. After another long gap of 17 years, Manushi Chhillar of Rohtak, Haryana won in 2017 in Sanya, China. Chhillar, who was pursuing an MBBS degree, ran a menstrual hygiene project called Shakti as her Beauty With a Purpose entry. In recent years, Sini Shetty represented India at Miss World 2024 in Mumbai and Nandini Gupta represented India at Miss World 2025 in Hyderabad, where Thailand won its first crown.
Is Miss World and Miss Universe the Same
No, Miss World and Miss Universe are not the same. Miss World was founded in 1951 in London and focuses on Beauty With a Purpose. Miss Universe was founded in 1952 in the United States and focuses on confident beauty. Both are leading global pageants with separate owners and formats.
| Feature | Miss World | Miss Universe |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1951 in the United Kingdom by Eric Morley | 1952 in the United States, linked to Catalina Swimwear and Miss USA |
| Headquarters | London, United Kingdom | New York and Bangkok, run by the Miss Universe Organization |
| Motto | Beauty With a Purpose | Confidently Beautiful |
| Core focus | Charity, social projects, talent and sports challenges | Confidence, personality, advocacy and stage presentation |
| Crown | Blue crown linked to purpose | Distinct universe themed crown |
Neither pageant is officially ranked above the other. Both are accepted as world leading contests. In simple terms, Miss World gives greater weight to community work and long term projects, while Miss Universe gives greater weight to personal confidence, communication and modern advocacy. The eligibility rules are also broadly similar, with contestants generally required to be unmarried, childless and aged between 17 and 27, though exact rules have been updated from time to time by each organisation.
What Next: Miss World 2027 in Tanzania
The Miss World Organisation has scheduled the next festival, the 74th Miss World, in Tanzania in May 2027. Tanzania formally received the hosting flag from Vietnam during the closing ceremony in Nha Trang on 5 September 2026. The handover marked the start of preparations for the month long 2027 festival.
The hosting agreement was signed in Dar es Salaam on 20 April 2026 between the Government of Tanzania and Miss World Limited, led by chairwoman Julia Morley. Tanzania’s Minister for Information, Culture, Arts and Sports, Paul Makonda, said the event would support tourism, hospitality and creative industries. Tanzania will become the first country in East and Central Africa to host Miss World and the fourth African country to do so after South Africa, Seychelles and Nigeria.
The organisers expect more than 130 countries to take part in 2027, with at least 20,000 international visitors and a global television audience of over 2 billion people. Tanzania’s own contestant in 2026, Latricia Ian Sawe, reached the Top 40 among 111 contestants, giving the future host a strong result in Vietnam. A local licence holder, 361 Degrees Africa, will run Miss World Tanzania and select the home representative under global standards.
Key Takeaways
- Joheirry Mola Dominguez of the Dominican Republic won Miss World 2026 at the 73rd edition held on 5 September 2026 in Nha Trang, Vietnam.
- Mola was crowned by Opal Suchata Chuangsri of Thailand, with Spain as first runner up and Malaysia as second runner up.
- Nikita Porwal of Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh, Femina Miss India World 2024, represented India and reached the Top 40.
- The Miss World Organisation, founded in 1951 by Eric Morley and led from London by Julia Morley, runs the pageant on the theme of Beauty With a Purpose.
- India has won six Miss World titles in 1966, 1994, 1997, 1999, 2000 and 2017, with Manushi Chhillar as the most recent winner.
- The 74th Miss World will be hosted by Tanzania in May 2027, the first time for East and Central Africa.
