The club was founded in 1936[1] as Hapoel Kfar Ata and was admitted to the Eretz Israel Football Association in 1938.

[2] During its early days, the club played in Haifa regional league,[3][4] and later in Liga Bet, the second tier of league football in the British Mandate for Palestine.

After the Israeli Declaration of Independence, Hapoel played in Liga Meuhedet, the temporary second tier in the 1949–50 season, where they finished third in the North division, and were placed in Liga Bet, the second tier of Israeli football at the time.

In 1956–57, the club made a return to Liga Bet, which became the third tier at the previous season, following restructuring of the Israeli football league system.

In the 1976–77 season, the club missed out on promotion to Liga Alef by a single point, to Hapoel Tiberias.