Gen Z beauty queen Dia Maté takes home PH’s 2nd Reina Hispanoamericana crown

AFTER 8 years, the Philippines once again bagged the Reina Hispanoamericana crown!

This is all thanks to Gen Z beauty queen Dia Maté, who has just been crowned Reina Hispanoamericana 2025 in Bolivia on Monday (Philippine time).

This is the second time a Filipina beauty queen bagged the title after Winwyn Marquez won the competition in 2017. Maté succeeded Peru’s Maricielo Gamarra.

During the coronation night, the 22-year-old singer-songwriter emphasized one important value a person should have to help build a better society for everyone.

“I think the most important value that we should have is kindness,” Maté said in her custom gold gown made by Rian Fernandez. “In my experience here in Bolivia, Latinas have shown me so much kindness and so much love even though racially I am not Latino.”

“And the most beautiful thing I’ve noticed is that even though we don’t speak the same language, we share the same culture, same heart, and same faith in God. And I hope this shows everybody that if we use kindness and that we can show that we are all the same, we can create a better world and a better society for us all,” she added.

Before the finals night, Maté bagged the Best in National Costume award for her “Banaag” ensemble. It is inspired by the Baroque Churches in the Philippines and is adorned with over 150,000 crystals to mimic the churches’ vibrant stained glass windows.

Reina Hispanoamericana has been around since 1991, celebrating Hispanic heritage, language, and culture. Candidates for the annual pageant come from countries with Hispanic influence.

Runner-ups

Meanwhile, Sofia Fernandez of Venezuela was crowned Virreina Hispanoamericana. She will replace the crowned Reina Hispanoamericana if the latter fails to do her duties.

Here are the runner-ups:

• First runner-up: Sharon Gamarra of Colombia
• Second runner-up: Carolina Perez of Spain
• Third runner-up: Nikita Palma of Peru
• Fourth runner-up: Julia de Castro of Brazil
• Fifth runner-up: Zuzanna Balonek of Poland

‘Te amo mucho, mi amor’

The Philippines is celebrating Maté’s triumph. But if there is one person who could not be more proud of her, it is none other than her boyfriend, Gen Z singer-songwriter Juan Karlos Labajo.

The “ERE” hitmaker posted photos of Maté on social media, expressing how proud he is of her achievement and how much he loves her.

“You’ve worked so hard to get to where you are now, and it fills my heart with warmth and joy to witness your growth and see how far you’ve come. You deserve all the good things life has to offer because you never gave up!” he wrote.

Despite the challenges—including countless sleepless nights and endless hours of training—the beauty queen dealt with during her preparations for Reina Hispanoamericana 2025, he said Maté managed to represent the Philippines on the international stage with “such grace and elegance” and inspire the younger generation.

“To my sweet, kind, loving, and beautiful soul—inside and out—my baby girl, my baba, my queen: I love you more than words can express. Te amo mucho, mi amor,” Labajo expressed.

Marquez also shared Maté’s portrait on her Instagram story to congratulate her.

“OMG! I am so happy!” the Philippines’s first Reina Hispanoamericana said.

In another post, the beauty queen wrote, “I knew it. Unang usap pa lang namin… Alam ko mananalo siya.”

Before joining the Reina Hispanoamericana 2025 pageant, Maté participated in the Miss Universe Philippines (MUPH) 2024 competition as a representative of Cavite.

Meanwhile, Marquez will be joining the MUPH pageant this year representing Muntinlupa.