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Former Indian association football club From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Viva Kerala Football Club (also known as Chirag United Club Kerala)[2] was an Indian professional football club based in the city of Kochi, Kerala.[3][4][5] The club was originally formed in 2004, as Viva Kerala.[6] They participated in the National Football League,[7][8] and later in the I-League,[9][10] then the top tier of Indian football league system,[11] alongside the Kerala Premier League.[12] The club was dissolved in 2012.[13]
| |||
| Full name | Viva Kerala Football Club[1] | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Short name | VKFC | ||
| Founded | 9 May 2004 (as Viva Kerala) | ||
| Dissolved | 2012 | ||
| Ground | EMS Corporation Stadium Jawahar Municipal Stadium Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium | ||
| Capacity | 80,000 (EMS Stadium) 30,000 (JM Stadium) 80,000 (JLN Stadium) | ||
| Owner | Chirag United Sports Pvt Ltd | ||
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Described as one of the most talented and youngest sides in I-League,[14][15] Viva Kerala was one of the unluckiest sides in domestic league history.[16][17] The club was briefly managed by noted Indian coach T. K. Chatunni.[18][19] They got dissolved in 2012.
Chirag United Club Kerala was formed on 8 August 2004 in Kochi.[20][21] 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).[22] Viva Kerala's name is the result of a contest, won by Dr. P Ramakrishnan of Ernakulam.[23] The club became registered with Ernakulam District Football Association.[24] Later known as "Chirag Kerala", the club won the 2005–06 season of Kerala State Football League,[25] it's only regional title. In September 2006, they emerged victorious in Tirur All-India Football Tournament in Tirur, beating Travancore Titanium XI 1–0.[26] 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.[27]
In 2007, the opportunity for an NFL spot came in the way of Second Division NFL.[28] Viva Kerala surprised everyone by finishing second in its group and qualified for the final phase.[29] 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.[23][30] 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.[31] In the next season, Viva Kerala were promoted to the 2009–10 I-League,[32][33][34][35][36] after finishing runners-up in 2009 I-League 2nd Division.[37][38][39] 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.[40] 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.[23]
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.[41] Chirag Computers have also said that they might move the team to Kolkata if they do not find a suitable stadium in Kerala.[42] 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.[43] Many supporters of the club had come out strongly against this idea.
Chirag was eliminated from the Federation Cup in the group stages when they lost all three group D matches;[44] Team coach K. P. Kunhikrishan was replaced by Sri Lankan manager Mohamed Nizam Packeer Ally.[45][46] He guided the team in I-League.[47] Pakir was sacked in February after a poor run; Ananta Kumar Ghosh was appointed coach while Biswajit Bhattacharya was appointed technical director.[48] 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.[49][50][51][52][53] 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.[2] Players may have had difficulty being paid when Chirag Computers may not have released sponsorship money to the club, and the reason why club got dissolved.[54][55][56][57]
The Chirag crest was very colourful. It shows a yellow shield with the words "Chirag United Kerala", which is imposed over a Coconut tree and a Soccer ball.[58][59]
Ever since their creation Chirag United Kerala have used multiple stadiums in Kerala.[24] For their first three I-League seasons Chirag used the Municipal Corporation Stadium which holds a capacity of 80,000 in Kozhikode,[62][63][64] and Jawahar Municipal Stadium which holds a capacity of 30,000 in Kannur.[65]
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They then after getting bought by Chirag Computers decided to move to the Jawarharlal Nehru International Stadium in Kochi which boasts a capacity of 70,000 and has working floodlights.[2] They played all their home games of 2011–12 I-League at the Jawarharlal Nehru International Stadium.[2]
Chiang United Kerala shared rivalries with other Kerala-based clubs including Kerala Police FC, SBI Kerala,[66] FC Kochin, Travancore Titanium XI and Quartz Calicut,[67][68][69] whom they faced in both the domestic and regional leagues.
The club was established in 2004 by a group of businessmen with an objective to represent Kerala in higher circles of domestic football in India.[70] Interestingly, the name of the club was arrived upon through a public contest organised by the promoters of the club.[71][72]
The club was run by Musli Power X-tra Kunnath Pharmaceuticals. In July 2011, Chirag Computers came in and brought full stake in the club, changing the name to "Chirag United Club Kerala".[73][74][75]
The following foreign players of Viva Kerala have been capped at senior/youth international level, with their respective countries. Years in brackets indicate their spells at the club.
Georji Ventseslavov Bizev (2006–2007)[76]
Yaw Amankwah Mireku (2007–2008)[77][78] Wisdom Abbey (2007–2008)[79][80]
Wisoot Bunpeng (2009)[81]
Peter Opiyo (2009–2010)[82] Charles Dzisah (2009–2011)[83][84]
Bello Razaq (2009–2012)[85]
Karma Tsewang (2010–2011)[nb 1][86]
Mohamed Kallon (2011)[87][88]
Simon Azoulay Pedersen (2011–2012)[89] Isaac Boakye (2012)[90] |
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