Written by Kiley Bartolozzi
In true Vegas-style, Love Island Games Season 2 kicked off finale week with an actual gamble. The remaining Islanders faced a series of casino-themed challenges that had some sitting pretty—and others sent on flights home.
Before the games even began, tensions flared between Sydney and Toby after Sydney discovered mid-challenge that Toby didn’t believe she had what it took to win. Feeling blindsided but determined, Sydney did not let the doubt throw her off guard.
One of the standout challenges, “Tilting Table” tested both strategy and teamwork. Couples had to steer three metallic balls across the shifting board to land them in the slots of the couples they wanted to make vulnerable. The surprise? Both Islanders had to move in perfect sync to tilt the table just right— one single mistake led the ball to roll into the incorrect slot, putting themselves or their allies at risk.
Unfortunately for Garbi and Casey, luck wasn’t on their side. The Tilting Table left them among the vulnerable couples, alongside Andrea and Josh and Johnny and Gabby — setting the stage for an unpredictable elimination.
Host Ariana Madix then cranked the stakes even higher, giving the vulnerable couples an impossible choice: let their fellow Islanders vote them out, or take a gamble on fate to decide who will stay or who will pack their bags. Garbi and Casey, unlike the others, rolled the dice— only for luck to turn against them, sealing their fate and sending them home from the villa.
With only a few days left in the villa, the Islanders turned up the strategy, forming alliances and plotting moves to get ahead. Toby and Johnny set their sights on Andrea and Josh, scheming to block them from the finish line. Meanwhile, Sydney stayed laser-focused on her own game, determined to win on her own terms, not Toby’s.
The Islanders play ball– literally in the semi-final game of “Shoot Your Shot”. Couples had to score more points than their rivals by shooting balls into a basket—though stealing balls from other Islanders was fair game. Each round ramped up the pressure, with the couple scoring the least receiving a dreaded white ball which led to elimination from the villa.
Andrea and Josh felt the villa was against them during the challenge, and that tension came back to bite them when the infamous white ball landed in their hands. Heartbroken by their exit, Josh got real, sharing that he played on this season for his late sister from his first Love Island run—hoping he made her proud.
On a lighter note, Isaiah and Lucinda crushed the challenge, earning the wine and securing a spot in the final showdown for a quarter-million dollars. The pair proved they had what it takes when it really counted and Lucinda proved everyone’s doubts wrong.
The finale tension hit hard as Ariana Madix returned to the villa, rallying the remaining couples for the Mega Duel. Isaiah and Lucinda had already secured their spot, while America’s votes sent Justine and Tyrique and Sydney and Toby into the final showdown, leaving Johnny and Gabby packing.
The “Mega Duel” was a two-part battle testing both mental agility and physical strength. In the first round, the three couples faced off in a grueling challenge, with Lucdina and Isaiah and Justine and Tyrique moving on to the ultimate final duel: “The Heist.”
Both couples gave it their all, pushing themselves to the limit in a tense and exhausting duel. In the end, determination and teamwork paid off, as Lucinda and Isaiah rescued enough bags to score 14 points to 10, claiming the wine and taking home the title of Love Island Games 2025 champions.
Just when you thought it was over, Lucinda and Isaiah faced one final twist: a choice between love or money, decided by the other Islanders. If they chose love, the prize would be split between them; if they chose money it would all go to the selected Islander.
The Islanders chose Isaiah, and he confidently picked love, ensuring that both he and Lucinda walked away not only as the winners of the cash prize but also as champions of love.
