{"id":45685,"date":"2025-11-20T04:24:12","date_gmt":"2025-11-20T04:24:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/45685\/"},"modified":"2025-11-20T04:24:12","modified_gmt":"2025-11-20T04:24:12","slug":"who-is-perla-figuereo-meet-the-squid-game-the-challenge-season-2-winner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/45685\/","title":{"rendered":"Who Is Perla Figuereo? Meet the ‘Squid Game: The Challenge’ Season 2 Winner"},"content":{"rendered":"

The second season of Squid Game: The Challenge<\/a> has come to an end\u2014and made a new player a millionaire. This year, after nine intense episodes, Perla Figuereo<\/a>, a.k.a. Player 72, made it to the final round and won Red Light, Green Light<\/a>, claiming the $4.56 million prize.<\/p>\n

Perla quickly became a standout player once she arrived on Netflix<\/a>‘s Squid Game<\/a> reality-show<\/a> spinoff, joining the season alongside her twin brother, Jeffrey Figuereo<\/a> and 454 other players<\/a>. While season 1 winner Mai Whelan<\/a> relied on a cutthroat strategy to win, Perla’s gameplay came down to being her “most authentic self” and tapping into her emotions (yes, including all the crying).<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

“Little Perlita from the BX Boogie Down Bronx and Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic<\/a>, is a multimillionaire,” she said through tears, in her final confessional. “I can breathe now. Like, money is not gonna be a worry. And that is just something I’ve never been used to. I am just feeling like the luckiest girl in the world right now.”<\/p>\n

Best picks for you<\/p>\n

Below, read on to learn more about Squid Game: The Challenge season 2<\/a> winner Perla Figuereo, including how she plans to use all that money.<\/p>\n

\n

\"Squid\n<\/p>\n

Squid Game: The Challenge season 2 winner Perla Figuerero with her winnings.<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Pete Dadds\/Netflix)<\/p>\n

Perla Figuereo is a model and film enthusiast who grew up in the Dominican Republic and the Bronx.<\/p>\n

Perla Figuereo<\/a>, 26, is a model currently based in L.A., who counts Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic and The Bronx, New York as her hometowns. In her Squid Game: The Challenge bio, the Leo shares that she “was born into the Mormon Church in the Dominican Republic” before moving to the U.S. She and her brother are no longer members of the faith.<\/p>\n

In a Tudum clip<\/a>, Perla and her brother Jeffrey opened up about their childhood move to the Bronx, explaining that they didn’t know any English when they entered public school. They also explained that their mom would send them pirated movies so they could learn the language. Later, the entertainment lovers would both major in film, with Perla graduating from Bates College<\/a>.<\/p>\n

“We were really blessed that we always had a roof, food, and toys,” Perla added. “Obviously, we were not the wealthiest, but we were wealthy in love. Something that in the Dominican Republic we say is ‘rico de cuna,’ which is ‘rich from nursery.’ So we definitely were that.”<\/p>\n

Get exclusive access to fashion and beauty trends, hot-off-the-press celebrity news, and more.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n

\"Squid\n<\/p>\n

Perla ahead of the season 2 finale.<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Pete Dadds\/Netflix)<\/p>\n

Perla Figuereo has worked with brands including Rare Beauty, Yitty, and Ceremonia.<\/p>\n

According to her LinkedIn<\/a>, Perla began her career in video production and social media, working for Fabletics and Galore Media after she moved to L.A. She became an ambassador for Yitty<\/a>, Lizzo<\/a>‘s athleisure and intimates brand, and eventually transitioned to modeling full-time, signing with Storm Management L.A.<\/a> in 2024. In addition to working with fashion and beauty brands, she has also created her own projects, such as the photo series “Cuberte<\/a>.”<\/p>\n

Earlier this year, Perla and Jeffrey appeared in a joint Rare Beauty<\/a> campaign celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month<\/a>. In an interview<\/a> at the time, Perla spoke about the importance of representation in beauty.<\/p>\n

“We deserve to see our beauty reflected. Growing up, I rarely saw Afro-Latinas in beauty spaces. Representation reminds us we belong\u2014not just as faces in the crowd, but as storytellers shaping the culture. To see our faces, to hear our accents, and see our curls is freedom from believing that our beauty is not the standard,” she said.<\/p>\n

Perla Figuereo (Player 72) joined ‘Squid Game: The Challenge’ with her brother, who sacrificed himself during Marbles.<\/p>\n

Though Perla and Jeffrey naturally stood out as siblings competing together, the pair was initially able to stay mostly under the radar, since they initially kept their connection secret, unlike other relative pairs like twins Raul and Jacob Gibson<\/a> (Players 431 and 432) and father-daughter duo Zo\u00eb Naggar<\/a> (Player 369) and Curt Stinson<\/a> (Player 370). Perla and Jeffrey stuck by each other’s side all the way until they were forced to go up against each other for Marbles.<\/p>\n

In an emotional sequence, Jeffrey sacrificed himself so Perla could continue to the next round. Speaking to Tudum<\/a>, Perla recalled continuing the game solo.<\/p>\n

“My brother is the calm that I need sometimes, so when he left, I was really scared that I wasn\u2019t going to hold it together,” she said. “For him to trust me so much, it gave me ammo. I was like, ‘If Jeffrey trusts me, then I should trust myself, and I shouldn\u2019t doubt myself [or] change for anyone else.'”<\/p>\n

\n

\"Squid\n<\/p>\n

Jeffrey Figuereo and Perla during Marbles.<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Courtesy of Netflix)<\/p>\n

Perla Figuereo (Player 72) plans to use her ‘Squid Game: The Challenge’ prize on family support and beauty treatments.<\/p>\n

On the night of the Squid Game: The Challenge season 2 finale, Perla attended Netflix’s finale celebration in Hollywood, where she opened up about her big plans for her winnings.<\/p>\n

“No. 1 is splitting it with Jeffrey,” she explained, per Gold Derby<\/a>. “I don’t need that much money, and my brother is the reason I passed Marbles. No. 2, we’re getting our mom and dad a house. We are an immigrant family. We all moved to this country, and our dream was to always own property and not worry about rent. My mom raised us from very low income and still gave us food and a home and a life and an education and happiness. But now it’s time to chill and get a house.”<\/p>\n

She then added, “And then, lastly, I’m gonna get a boob job!”<\/p>\n

\n

\"Perla\n<\/p>\n

Perla and Jeffrey at the Squid Game: The Challenge season 2 finale event in Hollywood.<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Tommaso Boddi\/Getty Images for Netflix)<\/p>\n

During her Tudum clip<\/a>, which included a tour of her L.A. apartment and was filmed after she won, Perla revealed that she had been manifesting wealth for a while. She showed a vision board she’d made with friends before the show came about, which included a check with her name and an infinity sign.<\/p>\n

“I wanted to attract security, stability, and the rich lifestyle. [Later], when I won the game, the little credit card was infinite.”<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n