Love Island was born in the UK and inspired new versions in countries across the globe. In a unique twist to the franchise, an upcoming spinoff—Love Island Games—will gather former contestants from the US, the UK, and Australia and give them a second chance at finding love.
In this article, you’ll find everything you need to know about the Love Island Games, including its concept, when it airs, and where and how you can tune in.
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What Are the ‘Love Island Games’?
Until now, Love Island has been run within countries: the US has its own version, Spain has its own version, France has its own version, and so on.
But soon, in a surprise twist to the franchise, ex-contestants from the US, the UK, and Australia will be brought together for a season—to compete in the so-called Love Island Games.
The format of the Games will be similar to the original Love Island shows: there’ll be dating, shock arrivals, recouplings, and eliminations.
However, one big difference is that there’ll also be team and couple challenges. The challenges should help friendships to form as well as strengthen couples’ bonds.
Another twist is that the Game contestants will be people already featured in the original Love Island seasons. It will be exciting to see how individuals have changed and whether they succeed at their second chance at finding love.
The Games May Be Inspired by Other Dating Shows
Reality TV fans have quickly recognised the similarities between the Love Island Games and other dating shows. For instance, Netflix’s Reality Games and The Bachelor’s Winter Games included contestants from their previous seasons.
However, the Love Island Games will be quite different. While Netflix and Bachelor Games both involved sport-related challenges, the Love Island Games will be just like the original Love Island, focusing on love and dating.
As fans have observed, the Love Island Games will be more similar to Perfect Match, which was all about coupling up, included couple challenges, and brought together international ex-contestants from other shows (including The Circle, Love Is Blind, and The Mole).
Given the instant popularity of Perfect Match, the Love Island Games should help keep Love Island relevant and might help revive the declining viewing figures it has seen in some regions. (In the UK, viewer numbers halved from 2022 to 2023.)
When Can You Watch the Love Island Games?
The Love Island Games will first air in the fall of 2023. We currently have no information on where you’ll be able to watch it in the UAE.
Where Can You Watch the Love Island Games?
Produced by ITV Entertainment, the Love Island Games will be available to watch on the US service Peacock.
What’s more, international services will likely also broadcast the Love Island Games. Rumour has it that the UK’s ITV, for example, will offer the Games on demand.
Another Planned Spinoff…
In addition to the Love Island Games, a further Love Island spinoff will hit screens soon in the UK.
Titled ‘My Mum, Your Dad’, the spinoff show will take British single parents aged 35+ and give them a shot at finding romance—this time in a countryside mansion.
An entertaining twist to the show will involve participation from the parents’ grown-up children. The latter will secretly observe their parents from a nearby ‘bunker’ and hand-pick partners for them to date.
The concept is inspired by similar shows in the USA and Australia, which proved very popular after airing last year.
Quite rightly, the host of the UK ‘My Mum, Your Dad’ is very excited about what’s to come. Davina McColl said, ‘I could fill a villa in Love Island with middle-aged people with the best backstories you have ever heard in your life’.
Given this new representation of an older age bracket, Love Island fans hope that the show will become even more diverse (for instance, when it comes to body type).
…And that’s a wrap! You now know everything you need to know about the upcoming Love Island spinoffs. Especially awaited are the Love Island Games, which will feature ex-contestants from the show’s global iterations and provide a fun, fresh spin on the franchise.
If you haven’t done already, it’s time to add the Love Island Games to your watchlist.
