Accra Hearts of Oak emerged champions of the 2025 Democracy Cup after narrowly defeating city rivals Accra Great Olympics 1-0 at the Legon Sports Stadium on Friday night.

A well-taken strike from Kwesi Asmah in the second half proved decisive, sealing victory for the Phobians in a hard-fought contest against the Wonder Club.

This year’s edition, the second since its inception, was once again organised by the Parliament of Ghana to celebrate the nation’s democratic journey through football. The event was graced by President H.E. John Dramani Mahama.

Having lost the maiden edition to arch-rivals Asante Kotoko, Hearts of Oak made amends by overcoming their neighbours to lift the trophy.

The Phobians began brightly, showing intent to score, but struggled to create clear chances in the opening half. Olympics, on the other hand, displayed solid organisation and discipline in defence, while also threatening on a few occasions.

After the break, the tempo of the game increased. Martin Karikari came close for Hearts with a curling effort, only to be denied by goalkeeper Doe Atiso. The breakthrough finally arrived in the 70th minute when Asmah’s right-footed strike beat the Olympics goalkeeper to give Hearts the lead.

Seven minutes later, Great Olympics nearly equalised, but Hearts shot-stopper Sharif Shuaib produced a brilliant save, tipping the ball onto the crossbar before smothering the resulting corner.

The Phobians held firm until the final whistle, securing a 1-0 win and being crowned champions of the 2025 Democracy Cup.