# 1998 Major League Soccer season

The 1998 Major League Soccer season was the third season of Major League Soccer. It was also the 86th season of FIFA-sanctioned soccer in the United States, and the 20th with a national first-division league.
The Chicago Fire and Miami Fusion played their inaugural seasons as the league's first two expansion teams.
The NY/NJ MetroStars dropped the New York/New Jersey from their name and rebranded as just MetroStars, with no city, state or regional name attached to it.
The regular season began on March 15, and concluded on September 27. The MLS Cup Playoffs began on September 30, and concluded with MLS Cup on October 25. Chicago became the first expansion team to win MLS Cup and the first to win it in its inaugural season.

## Overview
### Season format

The season began on March 15 and concluded with MLS Cup on October 25. The 12 teams were split evenly into two conferences. Each team played 32 games that were evenly divided between home and away. Each team played every other team in their conference four times, for a total of 20 games. The remaining schedule consisted of two games against each team from the opposite conference.
The top four teams from each conference qualified for the MLS Cup Playoffs. The conference semifinals and finals were played as a best-of-three series, and the winners advanced to MLS Cup. In all rounds, draws were broken by penalty shootout if necessary. The away goals rule was not used in any round.
The team with the most points in the regular season was awarded the MLS Supporters' Shield and qualified automatically for the CONCACAF Champions' Cup. Additionally, the winner of MLS Cup, and the runner-up, also qualified for the Champions' Cup.

### Stadiums and locations

| Team | Stadium | Capacity |
| Chicago Fire | Soldier Field | 66,944 |
| Colorado Rapids | Mile High Stadium | 76,273 |
| Columbus Crew | Ohio Stadium | 102,329 |
| D.C. United | RFK Stadium | 46,000 |
| Dallas Burn | Cotton Bowl | 92,100 |
| Kansas City Wizards | Arrowhead Stadium | 81,425 |
| Los Angeles Galaxy | Rose Bowl | 92,542 |
| MetroStars | Giants Stadium | 80,200 |
| Miami Fusion | Lockhart Stadium | 20,450 |
| New England Revolution | Foxboro Stadium | 60,292 |
| San Jose Clash | Spartan Stadium | 30,456 |
| Tampa Bay Mutiny | Houlihan's Stadium | 74,301 |

### Personnel and sponsorships

| Team | Head coach | Captain | Shirt sponsor |
| Chicago Fire | Bob Bradley | | — |
| Colorado Rapids | Glenn Myernick | | |
| Columbus Crew | Tom Fitzgerald | | Snickers |
| D.C. United | Bruce Arena | | MasterCard |
| Dallas Burn | Dave Dir | | |
| Kansas City Wizards | Ron Newman | | — |
| Los Angeles Galaxy | Octavio Zambrano | | — |
| MetroStars | Alfonso Mondelo | Tony Meola | |
| Miami Fusion | Carlos Cordoba | | — |
| New England Revolution | Thomas Rongen | | — |
| San Jose Clash | Brian Quinn | John Doyle | Honda |
| Tampa Bay Mutiny | John Kowalski | | |

### Coaching changes

| Team | Outgoing coach | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Incoming coach | Date of appointment |
| Tampa Bay Mutiny | John Kowalski | Resigned | June 6, 1998 | Tim Hankinson | June 8, 1998 |
| Miami Fusion | Carlos Cordoba | Fired | July 24, 1998 | Ivo Wortmann | July 25, 1998 |
| New England Revolution | Thomas Rongen | Fired | August 24, 1998 | Walter Zenga | August 24, 1998 |
| MetroStars | Alfonso Mondelo | Fired | September 21, 1998 | Bora Milutinović | September 21, 1998 |

## Standings
### Eastern Conference

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | SOW | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | D.C. United | 32 | 17 | 7 | 8 | 74 | 48 | +26 | 58 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 2 | Columbus Crew | 32 | 15 | 0 | 17 | 67 | 56 | +11 | 45 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 3 | MetroStars | 32 | 12 | 3 | 17 | 54 | 63 | −9 | 39 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 4 | Miami Fusion | 32 | 10 | 5 | 17 | 46 | 68 | −22 | 35 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 5 | Tampa Bay Mutiny | 32 | 11 | 1 | 20 | 46 | 57 | −11 | 34 | |
| 6 | New England Revolution | 32 | 9 | 2 | 21 | 53 | 66 | −13 | 29 | |

### Western Conference

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | SOW | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 32 | 22 | 2 | 8 | 85 | 44 | +41 | 68 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 2 | Chicago Fire | 32 | 18 | 2 | 12 | 62 | 45 | +17 | 56 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 3 | Colorado Rapids | 32 | 14 | 2 | 16 | 62 | 69 | −7 | 44 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 4 | Dallas Burn | 32 | 11 | 4 | 17 | 43 | 59 | −16 | 37 | MLS Cup Playoffs |
| 5 | San Jose Clash | 32 | 10 | 3 | 19 | 48 | 60 | −12 | 33 | |
| 6 | Kansas City Wizards | 32 | 10 | 2 | 20 | 45 | 50 | −5 | 32 | |

### Overall standings

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | SOW | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Los Angeles Galaxy (S) | 32 | 22 | 2 | 8 | 85 | 44 | +41 | 68 | CONCACAF Champions' Cup |
| 2 | D.C. United | 32 | 17 | 7 | 8 | 74 | 48 | +26 | 58 | CONCACAF Champions' Cup |
| 3 | Chicago Fire (C) | 32 | 18 | 2 | 12 | 62 | 45 | +17 | 56 | CONCACAF Champions' Cup |
| 4 | Columbus Crew | 32 | 15 | 0 | 17 | 67 | 56 | +11 | 45 | |
| 5 | Colorado Rapids | 32 | 14 | 2 | 16 | 62 | 69 | −7 | 44 | |
| 6 | MetroStars | 32 | 12 | 3 | 17 | 54 | 63 | −9 | 39 | |
| 7 | Dallas Burn | 32 | 11 | 4 | 17 | 43 | 59 | −16 | 37 | |
| 8 | Miami Fusion | 32 | 10 | 5 | 17 | 46 | 68 | −22 | 35 | |
| 9 | Tampa Bay Mutiny | 32 | 11 | 1 | 20 | 46 | 57 | −11 | 34 | |
| 10 | San Jose Clash | 32 | 10 | 3 | 19 | 48 | 60 | −12 | 33 | |
| 11 | Kansas City Wizards | 32 | 10 | 2 | 20 | 45 | 50 | −5 | 32 | |
| 12 | New England Revolution | 32 | 9 | 2 | 21 | 53 | 66 | −13 | 29 | |

## MLS Cup Playoffs
### Bracket

* The ties were a best of three series.
| Conference semifinals | Conference semifinals | Conference semifinals | Conference semifinals | Conference semifinals | Conference finals | Conference finals | Conference finals | Conference finals | Conference finals | MLS Cup | MLS Cup | MLS Cup |
| E1 | D.C. United | 2 | 0 (3) | x | | | | | | | | |
| E4 | Miami | 1 | 0 (2) | x | | | | | | | | |
| E4 | Miami | 1 | 0 (2) | x | E1 | D.C. United | 2 | 2 | 3 | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E1 | D.C. United | 2 | 2 | 3 | | | |
| Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | Eastern Conference | E2 | Columbus | 0 | 4 | 0 | | | |
| E2 | Columbus | 5 | 1 (3) | x | E2 | Columbus | 0 | 4 | 0 | | | |
| E3 | MetroStars | 3 | 1 (2) | x | | | | | | | | |
| E3 | MetroStars | 3 | 1 (2) | x | | | | | | E1 | D.C. United | 0 |
| | | | | | | | | | | W2 | Chicago | 2 |
| W1 | Los Angeles | 6 | 3 | x | | | | | | | | | W2 | Chicago | 2 |
| W4 | Dallas | 1 | 2 | x | | | | | | | | |
| W4 | Dallas | 1 | 2 | x | W1 | Los Angeles | 0 | 1 (1) | x | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W1 | Los Angeles | 0 | 1 (1) | x | | | |
| Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | Western Conference | W2 | Chicago | 1 | 1 (2) | x | | | |
| W2 | Chicago | 1 (3) | 1 | x | W2 | Chicago | 1 | 1 (2) | x | | | |
| W3 | Colorado | 1 (2) | 0 | x | | | | | | | | |

### Conference semifinals

Eastern Conference
* D.C. United advance 2–0, to the Conference Finals.
* Columbus Crew advance 2–0, to the Conference Finals.
Western Conference
* Los Angeles Galaxy advance 2–0, to the Conference Finals.
* Chicago Fire advance 2–0, to the Conference Finals.

### Conference finals

Eastern Conference
* D.C. United advance 2–1, to MLS Cup
Western Conference
* Chicago Fire advance 2–0, to MLS Cup

### MLS Cup
## Player statistics
### Goals

| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Stern John | Columbus Crew | 26 |
| 2 | Cobi Jones | Los Angeles Galaxy | 19 |
| 3 | Roy Lassiter | D.C. United | 18 |
| 3 | Raúl Díaz Arce | New England Revolution | 18 |
| 5 | Wélton | Los Angeles Galaxy | 17 |
| 6 | Jaime Moreno | D.C. United | 16 |
| 7 | Giovanni Savarese | MetroStars | 14 |
| 8 | Wolde Harris | Colorado Rapids | 13 |
| 8 | Mauricio Cienfuegos | Los Angeles Galaxy | 13 |
| 8 | Ronald Cerritos | San Jose Clash | 13 |

### Hat-tricks

| Player | Club | Against | Result | Date |
| Stern John | Columbus Crew | Miami Fusion | 5–1 | April 18 |
| Cobi Jones | Los Angeles Galaxy | Colorado Rapids | 7–4 | May 6 |
| Musa Shannon | Tampa Bay Mutiny | New England Revolution | 3–4 | May 10 |
| Vitalis Takawira | Kansas City Wizards | New England Revolution | 3–1 | May 16 |
| Martín Machón | Los Angeles Galaxy | Columbus Crew | 3–1 | May 17 |
| Stern John | Columbus Crew | Chicago Fire | 5–1 | May 30 |
| Harut Karapetyan | Los Angeles Galaxy | Dallas Burn | 8–1 | June 4 |
| Roy Lassiter | D.C. United | Chicago Fire | 4–1 | July 18 |
| Cobi Jones | Los Angeles Galaxy | Colorado Rapids | 6–1 | August 5 |
| Stern John | Columbus Crew | Kansas City Wizards | 5–3 | August 16 |
| Cobi Jones | Los Angeles Galaxy | New England Revolution | 5–1 | August 22 |
| Diego Serna | Miami Fusion | New England Revolution | 3–2 | August 30 |
| Preki | Kansas City Wizards | San Jose Clash | 5–1 | September 5 |

### Assists

| Rank | Player | Club | Assists |
| 1 | Eduardo Hurtado | MetroStars | 14 |
| 2 | Marco Etcheverry | D.C. United | 13 |
| 3 | Jerzy Podbrożny | Chicago Fire | 12 |
| 4 | Joe-Max Moore | New England Revolution | 11 |
| 5 | Adrián Paz | Colorado Rapids | 10 |
| 6 | Ronald Cerritos | San Jose Clash | 9 |
| 6 | Paul Dougherty | MetroStars | 9 |
| 6 | Cobi Jones | Los Angeles Galaxy | 9 |
| 9 | 10 players | 10 players | 8 |

### Clean sheets

| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets |
| 1 | Zach Thornton | Chicago Fire | 8 |
| 2 | Scott Garlick | D.C. United | 7 |
| 2 | Kevin Hartman | Los Angeles Galaxy | 7 |
| 4 | Mark Dodd | Dallas Burn | 6 |
| 5 | Mike Ammann | Kansas City Wizards | 5 |
| 5 | Ian Feuer | New England Revolution | 5 |
| 5 | David Kramer | San Jose Clash | 5 |
| 8 | Marcus Hahnemann | Colorado Rapids | 4 |
| 8 | Tony Meola | MetroStars | 4 |
| 8 | Juergen Sommer | Columbus Crew | 4 |

## Awards
### Individual awards

| Award | Player | Team |
| Most Valuable Player | Marco Etcheverry | D.C. United |
| Defender of the Year | Luboš Kubík | Chicago Fire |
| Goalkeeper of the Year | Zach Thornton | Chicago Fire |
| Coach of the Year | Bob Bradley | Chicago Fire |
| Rookie of the Year | Ben Olsen | D.C. United |
| Scoring Champion | Stern John | Columbus Crew |
| Goal of the Year | Brian McBride | Columbus Crew |
| Fair Play Award | Thomas Dooley | Columbus Crew |

### Best XI

| Goalkeeper | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards |
| Zach Thornton, Chicago | Thomas Dooley, Columbus Robin Fraser, LA Galaxy Luboš Kubík, Chicago Eddie Pope, D.C. United | Chris Armas, Chicago Mauricio Cienfuegos, LA Galaxy Marco Etcheverry, D.C. United Piotr Nowak, Chicago | Stern John, Columbus Cobi Jones, LA Galaxy |

### Player of the Month

| Week | Player | Club |
| March | Cobi Jones | Los Angeles Galaxy |
| April | Juergen Sommer | Columbus Crew |
| May | Piotr Nowak | Chicago Fire |
| June | Ross Paule | Colorado Rapids |
| July | Roy Lassiter | D.C. United |
| August | Stern John | Columbus Crew |
| September | Diego Serna | Miami Fusion |

### Weekly awards

Player of the Week :
| Week | Player | Club |
| Week 1 | Cobi Jones | Los Angeles Galaxy |
| Week 2 | Cobi Jones | Los Angeles Galaxy |
| Week 3 | Frank Klopas | Chicago Fire |
| Week 4 | Jason Farrell | Columbus Crew |
| Week 5 | Stern John | Columbus Crew |
| Week 6 | Paul Bravo | Colorado Rapids |
| Week 7 | Tony Meola | MetroStars |
| Week 8 | Cobi Jones | Los Angeles Galaxy |
| Week 9 | Vitalis Takawira | Kansas City Wizards |
| Week 10 | Peter Nowak | Chicago Fire |
| Week 11 | Stern John | Columbus Crew |
| Week 12 | Jerzy Podbrożny | Chicago Fire |
| Week 13 | Zach Thornton | Chicago Fire |
| Week 14 | Roman Kosecki | Chicago Fire |
| Week 15 | Luboš Kubík | Chicago Fire |
| Week 16 | John Harkes | D.C. United |
| Week 17 | Roy Lassiter | D.C. United |
| Week 18 | Marco Etcheverry | D.C. United |
| Week 19 | Cobi Jones | Los Angeles Galaxy |
| Week 20 | Stern John | Columbus Crew |
| Week 21 | Cobi Jones | Los Angeles Galaxy |
| Week 22 | Diego Serna | Miami Fusion |
| Week 23 | Carlos Hermosillo | Los Angeles Galaxy |
| Week 24 | Josh Wolff | Chicago Fire |
| Week 25 | Diego Serna | Miami Fusion |

## Attendance

| Rank | Team | GP | Cumulative | High | Low | Mean |
| 1 | Los Angeles Galaxy | 16 | 348,549 | 53,655 | 9,113 | 21,784 |
| 2 | New England Revolution | 16 | 307,004 | 35,462 | 13,074 | 19,188 |
| 3 | Chicago Fire | 16 | 286,190 | 37,122 | 7,598 | 17,887 |
| 4 | MetroStars | 16 | 264,316 | 56,404 | 8,826 | 16,520 |
| 5 | D.C. United | 16 | 256,127 | 23,631 | 9,755 | 16,008 |
| 6 | Colorado Rapids | 16 | 236,995 | 46,722 | 5,485 | 14,812 |
| 7 | San Jose Clash | 16 | 218,450 | 22,694 | 9,102 | 13,653 |
| 8 | Columbus Crew | 16 | 196,394 | 15,628 | 9,166 | 12,275 |
| 9 | Dallas Burn | 16 | 175,162 | 15,280 | 9,197 | 11,769 |
| 10 | Tampa Bay Mutiny | 16 | 164,999 | 22,704 | 4,473 | 10,312 |
| 11 | Miami Fusion | 16 | 164,548 | 20,450 | 6,127 | 10,284 |
| 12 | Kansas City Wizards | 16 | 129,163 | 13,146 | 4,130 | 8,073 |
| Total | Total | 192 | 2,747,897 | 56,404 | 4,130 | 14,312 |