Orkney Island Games 2025
The Island Games, a biennial event organised by the International Island Games Association (IIGA). A huge celebration of sports and culture, bringing many island territories to one place and competing in a range of sports from cycling to archery.
The games date back to 1985 and were held on the Isle of Man. All island members represent non-sovereign territories with sporting teams representing places such as Shetland, Ynys Mon, Saint Helena and as far as the Falkland Islands. The event runs for one week, with around 14 different sports being competed in, although the inaugural edition consisted of just seven sports.
Over time, the games have been growing in size and are now attracting a wider audience. Since 2001, the majority of the games have brought with them over 2,000 athletes to compete, with the most recent being held in Orkney in July 2025.
In Orkney, a total of ten teams participated in the men’s football competition. Often, the host islands perform relatively well in these games. Shetland hosted back in 2005, coming out victorious; this would be the same story for the Isle of Wight in 2011 and Bermuda in 2013.
Strong-performing islands in these games are often the Channel Islands of Guernsey and Jersey, which often reach the last four of the round robin. Guernsey, however, did not send a representative football team in this edition, so it was left to Jersey to represent the Channel Islands. Ultimately falling short, finishing fourth after losing to the Isle of Man in the 3rd/4th place medal placement game.
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The group stages threw up some incredible games. In Group A, the Isle of Man beat Frøya (Norwegian territory) 10-1 with a total of nine different goal scorers. Frøya, not known for their footballing prowess, came away with their only goal of the tournament, which in itself is an accomplishment. Not only did the Isle of Man win this game, but they won all three of their group stage games, scoring twenty goals and conceding just four. Perhaps a team to be afraid of.
In Group B, representation was given from Jersey, Shetland and Gozo (Maltese territory). A slow start saw Shetland and Gozo draw 0-0 in an uneventful game. Jersey came in to beat Gozo 2-0 in an expected result. The game between Shetland and Jersey, arguably, became the game of the tournament.
Jersey, in their ascendency, took the lead through Ewan Brodie in the 29th minute, and this was quickly followed up by Connor Maher in the 32nd minute. A 2-0 lead seemed comfortable until Lorn McNiven headed in to make it 2-1. Jersey’s centre back Frank Tobin was then sent off just before half-time, which gave Shetland hope. The importance of this game was vital; Shetland had to win to proceed to the Semi-final, whereas Jersey needed to avoid defeat.
Shetland
Jersey perhaps felt much more comfortable when, early on in the second half, Stuart Copland of Shetland was also given his marching orders, making it a 10 vs 10. Could Shetland fight their way back into this now? On comes Sam Maver, an exciting attacking player and one sent on to make a difference. 83rd minute, 25-yard free kick on the edge of the Jersey box. Sam Maver strikes the ball beautifully, and it rifles into the top corner, goal of the tournament. Unfortunately for Shetland, it wasn’t enough, and Jersey progressed to the semi-finals, with Shetland then losing to Orkney in the 5th/6th place play-off.
Semi Final 1, Isle of Man come up against the Welsh territory of Ynys Mon, an uneventful game with a singular penalty from Liam Morris giving the Welsh islanders a slender 1-0 victory and sending them to the final.
Semi-Final 2 was a different affair; Jersey came up against Bermuda U23’s. The Channel Island territory was coasting to a 1-0 victory until late in the game, when Andrew Armstrong of Bermuda equalised, sending the game into extra time. Jersey again take the lead in the 105th minute, but disaster 2 rapid fire goals from Bermuda in the 118th and 120th minutes seal victory and safe passage through to the final.
Bermuda are seeking to make it win another gold medal in football, with the women having won their competition. The final consisted of 2 Group C teams, which could not be separated in the group stages after an exciting 2-2 draw. However, the final wasn’t as close. Bermuda looked more comfortable and more energetic. The pace in attack was simply too much for Ynys Mon to deal with, and Bermuda walked away with a convincing 3-1 victory and collected another gold medal.
The closing ceremony was held and crowned the Faroe Islands the overall winner of the event, going home with 41 gold medals. Bermuda incidentally only went home with 2 gold medals, both for football, perhaps focusing on these events.
The next rendition of the Island Games is scheduled to be held in 2027 in the Faroe Islands, which could see Bermuda being overthrown as football champions. The Faroese are improving as a nation in both men’s and women’s football. Albeit, they will have to field a U23 side as they are FIFA-affiliated like Bermuda.
A sports event that is quietly building in stature, an event with huge potential and an already wide audience. Maybe one to tick off a groundhopping bucket list?
Written and Researched by BSc Cavan Campbell
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