Miss Universe France: two finalists from the Côte d’Azur
In September 2026, among the eleven finalists of the new Miss Universe France contest were two residents of the Côte d’Azur: Lillu Emelin-Artuso from Antibes and Valérie Pavelin from Mandelieu-la-Napoule. The winner will be announced in October 2026 in Paris, and the international final will take place on 24 November 2026 in Puerto Rico.
Why France will not be represented by Miss France
The Miss Universe contest has been held since 1952, and until now France had been represented by the winner of the national Miss France competition. In 2026 that link broke: on 28 May 2026 the Miss France organisation announced that it would not send a contestant to the international pageant. Its statement cited a wish “to remain faithful to the values of the Miss France contest, which at this stage no longer match the recent evolution and direction of the international competition.” The decision followed the scandal at Miss Universe 2025 in Bangkok, where jury members walked out and the organisers were accused of an opaque vote.
In response Miss Universe entrusted the French selection to a new committee — thus creating Miss Universe France, the first of its kind and in no way linked to the regional crowns of Miss France.
Selection without regional stages
The main difference from the usual scheme is that the regional ladder no longer exists. Applications were accepted directly through the contest website until 28 August 2026, from women from all regions and overseas territories of France. The committee held castings in Paris, Marseille and Nîmes.
“We reviewed more than a thousand candidates and selected eleven finalists capable of competing at Miss Universe,” said Miss Universe France committee president Inès Ligron to the publication Objectif Sud. The names of the finalists were announced on 5 September 2026, the first day of their joint preparation.
Two women from the Côte d’Azur in the final
Lillu Emelin-Artuso is originally from Antibes. She won the Miss Côte d’Azur 2024 title at the selection in Fréjus on 28 July 2024, and at Miss France 2025 she placed fourth runner-up — fifth overall.
Valérie Pavelin lives in Mandelieu-la-Napoule. She held the Miss Côte d’Azur 2021 title and reached the semifinals of Miss France 2022. For both women the new contest is a second attempt on the big stage, but this time without the regional step: both entered Miss Universe France by individual application.
Who else is competing for the crown
Among the nine rivals are faces familiar to Miss France viewers:
- Lou Ruat — Miss Provence 2019, first runner-up Miss France 2020;
- Maxime Teissier — fourth runner-up Miss France 2024;
- Mareva Michel — semifinalist Miss France 2026;
- Sarah Conan — Miss Bretagne 2021;
- Rennedy Lisa Kubieda — finalist Miss Paris 2026;
- Elisa Eva Mysyshyne — top-22 Miss Grand International.
The committee has not yet revealed the names of the other three finalists in the press. Judging by the list, the bet has been placed on women with national contest experience: almost all have already appeared on the Miss France stage or in international selections.
A week of preparation: Sommières, the Salins du Midi and the arenas of Arles
From 5 to 11 September 2026 all eleven finalists spent the week together in southern France. On 9 September they visited Sommières and the Salins du Midi, and then travelled to Arles: they were received at the town hall by the first deputy mayor, after which the women took to the Roman amphitheatre in evening dresses for a photoshoot.
The week is not only about photoshoots: the committee is selecting not the most beautiful, but the woman who can handle the international format, where contestants are expected to give public speeches in English and present their own social platform.
What’s next: Paris in October, San Juan in November
The winner of the French selection will be announced in October 2026 in Paris — the date and venue have not yet been announced. She will travel to the 75th Miss Universe international contest, which will be held on 24 November 2026 at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico José Miguel Agrelot in San Juan. France will, for the first time, send a contestant chosen outside the Miss France system.
Why this matters for the Côte d’Azur
The region has long produced finalists for beauty contests: the Miss Côte d’Azur crown has for decades been one of the most prominent in the country. But in 2026 two Côte d’Azur women made the short list for the new national selection — and did so without regional backing, by individual application.
For the Côte d’Azur this is another storyline that contributes to its reputation beyond the beach season: alongside the festival history of Cannes and Venice and the fashionable legacy of the Fitzgerald era. And Antibes itself, Lillu’s hometown, usually appears in our stories for far more prosaic reasons — such as lunch in the old town for under €10.
The outcome of the French selection will be known in October 2026. Whoever wears the crown, the Côte d’Azur has two of the eleven spots in this final — a ratio the region has never achieved in any Miss France.
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Photo: Willian Justen de Vasconcellos / Pexels