# 1998 in Paraguayan football

The following article presents a summary of the 1998 football (soccer) season in Paraguay.

## First division results
### Torneo Apertura

The Apertura tournament was played in a single all-play-all system. At the end, the top eight teams qualified to a playoff stage to determine the Apertura champion.
| Position | Team | Played | Wins | Draws | Losses | Scored | Conceded | Points |
| 1 | Cerro Porteño | 11 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 24 | 10 | 25 |
| 2 | Sportivo Luqueño | 11 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 17 | 16 | 21 |
| 3 | Olimpia | 11 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 15 | 7 | 20 |
| 4 | Presidente Hayes | 11 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 11 | 10 | 16 |
| 5 | Guaraní | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 11 | 13 | 15 |
| 6 | 12 de Octubre | 11 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 15 | 14 |
| 7 | Sol de América | 11 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 12 | 15 | 13 |
| 8 | Cerro Corá | 11 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 15 | 18 | 12 |
| 9 | Atl. Colegiales | 11 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 10 | 14 | 12 |
| 10 | San Lorenzo | 11 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 12 | 17 | 12 |
| 11 | Nacional | 11 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 18 | 20 | 10 |
| 12 | Libertad | 11 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 8 | 12 | 10 |

#### Apertura playoff stage

The top eight teams qualified to this stage and were given bonus points based on their final standing in the table. Two groups of four teams were made, with the top two of each group advancing to a playoff stage.

##### Group stage

Group A
| Position | Team | Played | Wins | Draws | Losses | Scored | Conceded | Bonus Points | Points |
| 1 | Olimpia | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 2 | [2] | 8 |
| 2 | Sol de América | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 5 | [0] | 6 |
| 3 | Guaraní | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 6 | [1] | 5 |
| 4 | Sportivo Luqueño | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 | [2.5] | 3.5 |
Group B
| Position | Team | Played | Wins | Draws | Losses | Scored | Conceded | Bonus Points | Points |
| 1 | Cerro Porteño | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 2 | [3] | 12 |
| 2 | 12 de Octubre | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | [0.5] | 4.5 |
| 3 | Cerro Corá | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | [0] | 4 |
| 4 | Presidente Hayes | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 7 | [1.5] | 1.5 |

##### Semifinals

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Olimpia | 4 - 2 | 12 de Octubre | 3-1 | 1-1 |
| Sol de América | 1 - 1 (7 - 6 P.K.) | Cerro Porteño | 1-0 | 0-1 |

##### Apertura final

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Olimpia | 3 - 1 | Sol de América | 2-0 | 1-1 |
Olimpia wins the Apertura tournament final by aggregate score of 3-1.

### Torneo Clausura

The Clausura tournament was played in a single all-play-all system. At the end, the top eight teams qualified to a playoff stage to determine the Clausura champion.
| Position | Team | Played | Wins | Draws | Losses | Scored | Conceded | Points |
| 1 | Cerro Porteño | 11 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 28 | 9 | 26 |
| 2 | Guaraní | 11 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 20 | 15 | 21 |
| 3 | Cerro Corá | 11 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 18 | 16 | 18 |
| 4 | Atl. Colegiales | 11 | 5 | 1 | 5 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| 5 | 12 de Octubre | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 18 | 20 | 15 |
| 6 | Sol de América | 11 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 12 | 10 | 13 |
| 7 | * Nacional | 11 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 17 | 23 | 13 |
| 8 | Olimpia | 11 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 13 | 12 | 12 |
| 9 | San Lorenzo | 11 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 13 | 16 | 11 |
| 10 | Sportivo Luqueño | 11 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 8 | 13 | 11 |
| 11 | Libertad | 11 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 18 | 9 |
| 12 | Presidente Hayes | 11 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 18 | 8 |
* Nacional finished in the top eight but their average points over three years forced the team to be relegated so they did not take part of the playoff stage. San Lorenzo took their place instead.

#### Clausura playoff stage

The top eight teams qualified to this stage and were given bonus points based on their final standing in the table. Two groups of four teams were made, with the top two of each group advancing to a playoff stage. San Lorenzo replaced Nacional in the playoff stage due to Nacional being relegated to the second division.

##### Group stage

Group A
| Position | Team | Played | Wins | Draws | Losses | Scored | Conceded | Bonus Points | Points |
| 1 | Cerro Porteño | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 3 | [3] | 12 |
| 2 | Atlético Colegiales | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | [1.5] | 5.5 |
| 3 | San Lorenzo | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 7 | [0] | 3 |
| 4 | Sol de América | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 7 | [1.5] | 0.5 |
Group B
| Position | Team | Played | Wins | Draws | Losses | Scored | Conceded | Bonus Points | Points |
| 1 | Olimpia | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 4 | [0] | 7 |
| 2 | Cerro Corá | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 5 | [2] | 7 |
| 3 | Guaraní | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 4 | [2.5] | 6.5 |
| 4 | 12 de Octubre | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 6 | [1] | 1 |

##### Semifinals

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Cerro Corá | 1 - 3 | Cerro Porteño | 1-0 | 0-3 |
| Olimpia | 6 - 1 | Atlético Colegiales | 5-0 | 1-1 |

##### Clausura final

| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Cerro Porteño | 4 - 4 (4 - 3 P.K.) | Olimpia | 1-4 | 3-0 |
Cerro P. wins the Clausura tournament final on penalty shootout 4-3.

### National championship game

The national championship game was played between the Apertura and Clausura tournaments winners.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Cerro Porteño | 3 - 5 | Olimpia | 2-2 | 1-3 |
Olimpia declared as national champions by aggregate score of 5-3.

### Relegation / Promotion

* Nacional and Libertad automatically relegated to the second division after finishing last and second-to-last in the average points table based over a three-year period.
* Resistencia promoted to the first division by winning the second division tournament.

### Qualification to international competitions

* Olimpia qualified to the 1999 Copa Libertadores by winning the Torneo Apertura.
* Cerro Porteño qualified to the 1999 Copa Libertadores by winning the Torneo Clausura.

## Lower divisions results

| Level | Tournament | Champion |
| 2nd | Intermedia | Resistencia |
| 3rd (G.A. teams) | Primera de Ascenso | Oriental |
| 3rd (interior teams) | UFI Champions Cup | Sportivo Obrero (San Juan Misiones) |
| 4th (G.A. teams) | Segunda de Ascenso | Sport Colonial |

## Paraguayan teams in international competitions

* Copa Libertadores 1998:
** Cerro Porteño: Semi-finals
** Olimpia: Round of 16
* Copa MERCOSUR 1998:
** Olimpia: Semi-finals
** Cerro Porteño: Group stage
* Copa CONMEBOL 1998:
** Cerro Corá: First round

## Paraguay national team

The following table lists all the games played by the Paraguay national football team in official competitions during 1998.
| Date | Venue | Opponents | Score | Comp | Paraguay scorers | Report |
| 1998-02-08 | Estadio Defensores del Chaco Asunción, Paraguay | Poland | 4 - 0 | F | Benítez 25' Arce 27' Ayala 55' Ferreira 67' | 450 |
| 1998-03-14 | Qualcomm Stadium San Diego, United States | United States | 2 - 2 | F | Caniza 15' Arce 27' (pk) | 451 |
| 1998-03-18 | Estadio Olímpico Universitario Mexico City, Mexico | Mexico | 1 - 1 | F | Benítez 62' | 452 |
| 1998-03-28 | Yale Bowl New Haven, United States | Colombia | 1 - 1 | F | Benítez 43' | 453 |
| 1998-04-22 | Stadio Ennio Tardini Parma, Italy | Italy | 3 - 1 | F | Sarabia 57' | 454 |
| 1998-05-17 | Olympic Stadium Tokyo, Japan | Japan | 1 - 1 | Kirin Cup | Ayala 7' | 455 |
| 1998-05-21 | Kobe Universiade Memorial Stadium Kobe, Japan | Czech Republic | 1 - 0 | Kirin Cup | | 456 |
| 1998-06-01 | Philips Stadion Eindhoven, Netherlands | Netherlands | 5 - 1 | F | Campos 2' | 457 |
| 1998-06-03 | Steaua Stadium Bucharest, Romania | Romania | 3 - 2 | F | Cardozo 27' Acuña 62' | 458 |
| 1998-06-06 | King Baudouin Stadium Brussels, Belgium | Belgium | 1 - 0 | F | | 459 |
| 1998-06-12 | Stade de la Mosson Montpellier, France | Bulgaria | 0 - 0 | World Cup | - | Report |
| 1998-06-19 | Stade Geoffroy-Guichard Saint-Étienne, France | Spain | 0 - 0 | World Cup | - | Report |
| 1998-06-24 | Stade de Toulouse Toulouse, France | Nigeria | 1 - 3 | World Cup | Ayala 1' Benítez 58' Cardozo 86' | Report |
| 1998-06-28 | Stade Félix Bollaert Lens, France | France | 0 - 0 ( 1 - 0 A.E.T.) | World Cup | - | Report |