Founded in 1989 as FC Machida Top in the suburban Tokyo city of Machida, this community-based club had no corporate parent. They are the only professional club in Japan to have climbed from the lowest tier of prefectural league football all the way to J1. The name "Zelvia" is a portmanteau of zelkova (the city tree of Machida) and salvia (the city flower).

The club's trajectory changed dramatically in 2018, when IT conglomerate CyberAgent took over management. Strategic investment in player recruitment and infrastructure bore fruit rapidly: Machida won the J2 title in 2023 and earned their first-ever J1 promotion for the 2024 season. The story of a suburban Tokyo club rising to national prominence in just a few years has become one of the J.League's most compelling modern narratives.

Manager Go Kuroda is an unconventional figure in professional football, having spent 28 years coaching powerhouse high school Aomori Yamada before making his professional debut with Machida in 2023. Despite no prior pro experience, he won the J2 title in his first season and guided the club to the upper half of J1 in his second.

Kuroda's approach centers on rigid defensive organization, clinical set-piece execution, and the controversial use of long throws as a tactical weapon. While his methods have divided opinion, the results have been undeniable. His philosophy -- forged in the crucible of Japanese high school football -- prioritizes discipline, mentality, and doing whatever it takes to win.

On November 22, 2025, Machida defeated Vissel Kobe 3-1 at the National Stadium in their first-ever Emperor's Cup final, claiming the club's maiden domestic trophy in their 36th year of existence. The sight of a club that once competed in the lowest tier of Japanese football lifting the country's most prestigious cup competition sent a powerful message through the sport. The victory also secured entry into the 2025-26 AFC Champions League Elite.