Moorvale Street Academy have emerged champions of the 2026 Kick Out Hate Crime Through Sports (KOHCTS) Soccer Tournament after defeating AFC Florentina 9-8 on penalties.
The final ended 0-0 after regulation time, forcing a penalty shootout that eventually saw Moorvale claim the championship.
Moorvale’s victory marked an improvement on their runners-up finish in last year’s competition.
AFC Florentina, competing in the tournament for the first time, reached the final after defeating Ottawa Police Service 3-0 in the first semifinal. Moorvale secured their final berth with a 2-0 victory over Harpy Eagles FC.
Ottawa Police finished third after beating Harpy Eagles 1-0 in the bronze-medal match.
The tournament benefited from strong institutional and community support. Ottawa Police Service donated the trophies and medals and facilitated the partnership with Ottawa South United (OSU), which donated football jerseys for participating teams and provided football equipment. NAS donated drinks and helped facilitate funds for tournament logistics.
Ottawa Police Chief Eric Stubbs attended the tournament despite the rain, further demonstrating the police service’s commitment to community engagement through sport.
Emmanuel Tobi, Founder and COO of Canadian Hope Transformation Initiatives, the organisation behind KOHCTS, thanked all participating teams and expressed his appreciation to Ottawa Police Service, OSU and NAS for their contributions to the successful staging of the tournament.
KOHCTS 2026 concluded with Moorvale lifting the trophy, but the tournament’s broader victory was its ability to bring together footballers, police, community organisations and residents around a common message of unity, inclusion and the fight against hate and crime.
