The summer’s Island Games boosted the Orkney economy by £4.3 million a report published this week has revealed.

The event, held over six days in July, cost £3.6m to stage and involved 1,630 athletes from 24 island communities including the Isle of Man.

It was the largest event ever hosted by the Orkney community of around 22,000 people and involved 1,027 local volunteers. The archipelago off the north coast of Scotland is the smallest to host the biennial event.

Ahead of the games, some of the Scottish islands’ sporting facilities were given a £1.6m upgrade. This included a new athletics track, upgraded golf courses, and gymnastics equipment.

The report, compiled by Robert Gordon University in Aberdeen, also revealed that a total of 4,369 spectators travelled to Orkney for the event, with 48% from Scotland, 10% from the rest of the UK, and 42% international.

The games drew a total attendance of at least 63,336, with an average of 4.8 days attended per spectator and 1.7 venues visited per day.

In addition, the games attracted more than 580,000 livestream views and 4,000 channel subscribers with 84,900 hours spent watching the event.

Gordon Deans, chairman of Orkney 2025, told the BBC: ‘From the very beginning, our vision for Orkney's Island Games was built on solid foundations - committed sports partners, strong financial governance, realistic goals, and community-wide involvement.

‘Our aim was always to ensure the Games delivered maximum impact and lasting benefits for the people and businesses of Orkney.

‘It's incredibly rewarding to see this report reflect, through both data and surveys, what everyone felt throughout the week; that the Games were a resounding success on every level.’

The 21st Island Games will take place in the Faroe Islands in 2027, before heading home to the Isle of Man in 2029. It will be the third time the island has hosted the event.