It’s no secret that Heated Rivalry is one of the biggest book-to-screen adaptations of recent years. The smutty, queer hockey romance stole the hearts of fans everywhere when it was released in late 2025, and its popularity hasn’t wavered at all. Fans are only going to get more intense now that news has dropped that Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie will be suiting up for a third season as well. However, I'm concerned about one detail.Heated Rivalry Is Getting Not One But Two More Seasons (And Another Surprise) Fans of Heated Rivalry have already known about Season 2 kicking off production, as photos from the set have been leaked despite the show’s creator, Jacob Tierney, kindly asking fans to give them space while filming. The news about a third season has been highly speculated, and now, that has been confirmed as well. Both seasons are reportedly being filmed back-to-back. This theoretically means that there shouldn’t be a huge wait between seasons, and maybe fans could get all twelve episodes sometime next year.In addition to two more seasons with Shane and Ilya, Deadline reports that Tierney is working on a standalone theatrical release that the trade believes will be a “Christmas special” or “holiday-themed episode” centered around Season 1, Episode 3 couple Scott (François Arnaud) and Kip (Robbie G.K.). It’s not the Heated Rivalry-centric bonus episode fans have been hoping for, but the holiday special could be inspired by the short holiday story author Rachel Reid penned for the couple and earlier this year took down from her official website. As a fan of the sports drama series, I’m overjoyed at the news, but I do have one concern heading into these news seasons when it comes to what it might mean for Shane and Ilya’s relationship. I’m Worried About What This Means For Shane And Ilya’s Complete Love Story Unlike the other couples in Reid’s Game Changers book universe, Shane and Ilya’s relationship unfolds over several books. When the series was released (and subsequently renewed for a second and a secret third season), the couple’s second book, The Long Game, was the final installment in their relationship. But then Reid announced she was writing a third book, Unrivaled, centered on the fan-favorite couple. Had Reid not made the announcement that she was writing Unrivaled, I would have confidently said that Tierney and the creative team behind Heated Rivalry planned to split The Long Game into two seasons. This would allow the show to really dig deep into Shane and Ilya’s relationship challenges and give fans a faithful adaptation like the first season did. It would also provide space for the show to explore some of the other couples in the Game Changes universe, which seems to be happening based on casting announcements for Season 2. Splitting The Long Game into two seasons might still be the case, which is great news for fans of the novel; however, it does raise concerns about the potential for an adaptation of Unrivaled. After all, if Seasons 2 and 3 are centered on the second novel, then the show would need to be renewed for a fourth season in order to see the third book and the presumed conclusion of Shane and Ilya’s love story on screen. Given the show’s popularity, a hypothetical fourth season seems like a no-brainer, but one also has to consider the schedules of the cast and crew. With Storrie and Williams both cast in new shows and movies, it might be hard to get them on board for another season beyond these next two. Still, I’d like to believe that the talented actors would be eager to see Ilya and Shane's storyline through to the end. All of this is purely speculation, as we don't know much about Season 2 of Heated Rivalry other than it's expected to drop in Spring 2027. When that happens, we'll know what to expect from Season 3. Until then, I’ll be streaming, or as fans have dubbed it “reheating,” Season 1 of Heated Rivalry with my HBO Max subscription. Fans can also catch the episodes playing for a limited time in theaters in the US and Canada.