Formation and journey Viva Kerala was formed on 8 August 2004 in
Kochi. The club officially took off on 19 August in a ceremony at the FACT grounds. The team was predominantly formed by a group of businessmen who felt the need for the state's representation in country's domestic top flight league, the
National Football League (NFL). Viva Kerala's name is the result of a contest, won by Dr. P Ramakrishnan of
Ernakulam. Later known as "Chirag Kerala", the club won the 2005–06 season of
Kerala State Football League, its only regional title. In September 2006, they emerged victorious in Tirur All-India Football Tournament in
Tirur, beating
Travancore Titanium XI 1–0. They also reached the final of E. K. Nayanar Memorial Football Gold Cup in 2007 but lost at the end to the visiting Ghanaian club
Nania Accra, by 3–0 margin. In 2007, the opportunity for an NFL spot came in the way of Second Division NFL. Viva Kerala surprised everyone by finishing second in its group and qualified for the final phase. In the final phase, they finished as runners-up of the Second Division NFL to book their place in the I-League 2007–08 on 6 April 2007. The club along with
Salgaocar, were relegated to 2nd division at the end of I-league 2007–08, for the first time in the league history. In the next season, Viva Kerala were promoted to the
2009–10 I-League, after finishing runners-up in
2009 I-League 2nd Division. In 2010, it was announced that I-League clubs needed to complete the AFC club licensing criteria; Viva Kerala signed P. K. Kunhikrishnan (A-licensed coach) as the new head coach. In August 2011, Chirag Computers was announced as the to be new majority owners and the club name would change to Chirag United Club Kerala. with Chirag after a match in 2011 In June 2011, Kolkata-based Chirag Computers bought the financially troubled Viva Kerala. They took over a 60% stake in the club while original owners retained a 40% stake. They also changed the name of the club to
Chirag United Club Kerala. Chirag Computers have also said that they might move the team to
Kolkata if they do not find a suitable stadium in
Kerala. The name of the team was officially changed to
Chirag United Club Kerala on 6 August 2011. While the new owners announced that team will be based in Kerala for the
2011–12 I-League, there were talks of shifting the team to Kolkata after the season. This would leave the state of Kerala without representation in the
I-League. Many supporters of the club had come out strongly against this idea.
Last season (2011–12) in 2011. Chirag was eliminated from the Federation Cup in the group stages when they lost all three group D matches; Team coach K. P. Kunhikrishan was replaced by Sri Lankan manager
Mohamed Nizam Packeer Ally. He guided the team in I-League. Pakir was sacked in February after a poor run; Ananta Kumar Ghosh was appointed coach while
Biswajit Bhattacharya was appointed technical director. Chirag finished second to last at 12th in the 2011–12 I-League season, Pailan Arrows had finished 13th were exempted from relegation as a "developmental team", and so Chirag relegated. Though in that season, they achieved fame after giving a tough fight to
Campeonato Brasileiro Série A club
Botafogo in their 1–0 defeat at a group stage match in
2012 IFA Shield. ==Club crest and kits==